0.—3.

4

State schools to the number of 765 have begun school tree nurseries and plantations. Local bodies—such as cities, boroughs, counties, Harbour Boards, Electric-power Boards, &c. —to the number of nineteen, are now carrying on forest-planting projects to the extent of 92,075 acres ; proprietary companies, to the number of eighteen, are committed to the formation of 91,900 acres ; whilst thousands of farmer settlers are planting millions of trees per annum. University educational facilities by way of a School of Forestry as recommended have been provided at Canterbury University College for the training of professional forest engineers and technicians, and for the giving of special and applied instruction to timber-land owners, operators, and workers, whilst similar equal facilities have also been made available at Auckland University College. There should be no lack of trained personnel in the near future for the forest industry and for all forestry interests. (7.) General.—The conservation and control of wild life witliin State forests has received serious attention during the period, for a very close and intimate relationship exists between the indigenous avifauna and the regeneration of the taxad or native " pine " forests. Investigation indicates that "No native bird-life means no taxad forests, and no forests means no native bird-life." For that reason the State Forest Service has co-operated closely with the controlling Government authority (Department of Internal Affairs) and the Native Bird Protection Society, and others, with a view to building up a better bird sentiment, and, where possible and desirable, prosecutions for illegal shooting have been carried through. It is gratifying to report that the native-bird population of the Dominion is rapidly growing. The deer herds throughout the Dominion, which, unfortunately for the welfare of the forestgrowth, harbour in the forests, had so rapidly increased during the past generation that further investigation was made into this menace during the period. It was found that there were approximately three hundred thousand head in the Dominion, that the annual increase is probably over 25 per cent., and that the yearly damage is in the neighbourhood of £180,000, whilst the problematical annual benefit through licenses and tourists was only £7,000. As a result of representations to the responsible agency open seasons were declared over 11,250 square miles in the South Island, and bounty-moneys were made available for all deer destroyed. To date at least twenty thousand deer have been exterminated in the Dominion by systematic culling, payment of bounty, and open seasons. The wild-pig nuisance in the Taranaki District has also received attention during the period, and through the control of the Forest Service bounty has been paid on pigs destroyed to the number of 14,533. The opossum-trapping industry, as far as State forests are concerned, is being carefully regulated in order to avoid overtrapping and extermination of this highly valuable yet forest-harmiess animal. For the period approximately 165,550 opossum-skins, with a value of £54,500, have been trapped from State forests. (9.) During the period the Forest Service, as the one governmental forestry authority, has endeavoured to build up full co-operative relations with other Departments which may have direct or general forest and timber problems. As overlapping and duplication of effort is both wasteful and unnecessary, the knowledge and experience of the Service has accordingly been gladly made available to the Departments of Lands, Mines, Valuation, Public Works, Railways, Native Affairs, Post Office, Education, Prisons, Public Trust, and Industries and Commerce. Over 78,800 acres of valuable timber lands have been examined and reported upon for other Departments, Education Boards, and others. For local bodies, forest-planting and other similar projects have been investigated and reported upon, whilst for prospective industrial and private planters several thousand reports and advisory memoranda have been prepared. The services of the Department also have been readily given to the public with regard to all timber technological problems and to a thousand and one other aspects of woods and forestry. 11. FOREST-MANAGEMENT. (10.) A modern and efficient sale policy for the disposal of the ripe and mature timber in State forests was put into operation early in the period, and, as was predicted, with splendid consequential results, both to the State and to the wood using and consuming public, for New Zealand is now securing a fairer and larger share of the competitive market value of all merchantable forests sold for exploitation. The receipts from timber-sales for the period are as follows

Schedule showing Ripe Timber sold and Contract Sale Price of same.

Yea, Timber sold. ! Year. Timber sold. J Sup. Ft. I £ Sup. Ft. £ 1920-21 .. 6,987,000 j 17,055 1923-24 .. 212,085,000 266,388* 1921-22 .. 35,669,000 38,208 1924-25 .. 69,253,000 96,158 1922-23 78,830,000 95,357 * Includes three extraordinary departmental sales amounting to £140,000.