0.—3

2

REPORT. CHAPTER I.—GENERAL REVTEW. Forestry Progress for the Year ended 31st March, 1927. General. The past year has been one of quiet, steady, and, in certain directions, again one of record progress Towards the completion of our 1935 goal (300,000 acres) 19,924 acres of State commercial softwood plantations were formed, principally in the Auckland, Rotorua, and Canterbury-Otago conservation regions. A considerable area was also covered experimentally by direct-formation, mechanicalseeding operations in the Rotorua-Kaingaroa district, while experimental plantations to the extent of 613 acres were established in the North Auckland, Manawatu, Marlborough, and Westland districts The total area of State-forest plantations is now 98,891 acres.

Comparison of Annual Tree-pl anting Operations in State Forest Plantations for Years 1921-27.

Graph showing Cost of Establishing One Acre of State Forest Plantations for the Years 1921-27.

Other important indices of national forestry progress may be found in the nearly perfect forestfire record for the 7,600,000-acre State-forest domains, where the total losses from fire amounted to only £12 ; in the sale of 4,760,000 trees (from State-forest nurseries) and 3,861 lb. of tree-seeds to farmers and other private planters ; in a forest income of £128,000 ; in the operation of 858 school forest-nurseries. Outstanding records were effected in the formation of 52,834 acres of plantations by local-government bodies, afforestation companies, and others. A sum of £236,275 was expended in forming plantations, constructing permanent improvements in the indigenous State forests, in forest-protection, salaries, forest research and investigations, in the purchase of forests and forestable lands, in subventions to County Councils for the construction and maintenance of back roads and bridges, in payments to the National Endowment Fund, and in interest charges.