Show to ImP improve the range the government has planned a series of scientific re seeding diug experiments on OD several of the national forest ranges next sum suin mer to determine under what conditions conditi and in what manner those portions of the range which have been seriously damaged bv overgrazing may be restored to their former productiveness ivaness sF A great deal of the range land in the west is overgraze overgrazed over graz grazed ed and does not carry as s much stock as formerly the method of handling adling tock stock particularly sheep is perhaps more responsible fot for this condition than ana an other cause but all causes of beteri oration arid and all means for improving the forage crop need to lie studied that tho the range muy lie he bi ought brought into the best con dation to meet the imperative demand of the livestock live stock industry the plan is to estu establish blish experimental peri mental stations in ill several parts of the country probably not more inore than six will be tried at first but then they will be so cocat bd as to secure typical conditions the experiments will be begun on asni a small ail scale on five or six acre tracts both native and wild grasses will be tried but it is ii believed that the plan of encouraging native grasses will meet with greater success than the introduction of cul species at least in the rocky mountain region in the coast ranges with their greater rainfall cultivated grasses are more inore likely to play an important part in range development the ranges of the nor west lave bave not been so seriously dawa darc aged by overgrazing im as those of the southwest perhaps because of superior moisture cou editions of the northern part of the country it is a fact however b 0 A that none of the ranges sup port the stock istock which they did formerly and re beeding experiments will therefore be undertaken in this section of the country also the method of handling stock is also to he be considered every stockman knows that stock do not waste as much feed when unrestricted in their movements ments as when close cloie herded an experimental peri mental tal pasture was last summer in the imnaha aha national forest in oregon which will by be a amodol for others next season reason in this pasture sheep were turned loose without a herder to shift for them serves it is tao booi fco draw positive conclusions for this experiment peri ment but the sheep did well and there was a decided lessening in thedos the loss of forage through trampling looks as though a given a given iven area of ground can be made to carry a very much larger number of animals when they are allowed to graze free fre than when close herded this fact if established will b be e of decided importance to stock men |