5. Lyleton Field Shelterbelts by Jim Murray
Originally published in the R.M. of Edward History

The early homesteaders found a sea of waving grasses, bluejoint, and other native hays. They plowed them under. The result: hot, dry, prairie winds often blew their freeholds into the next township.
 


Near Lyleton Mb.

The early farmers soon realized what had to be done. They knew that at home in Ontario, the British Isles or the Ukraine, native stands of trees and shrubs protected cultivated cropland from erosion. Not only would trees catch and hold the moisture in the soil, they would provide windbreaks for home and herd. But natural tree growth on the prairies was restricted to spring fed coulees and lowland river valleys. The only answer was to grow seedlings in nursery plots and transplant them on the prairies.
In 1935 Parliament passed the "Prairie Farm Re- habilitation Act", (P.F.R.A.). Subsequently, thousands of dugouts were to catch and hold spring runoff water and new tree planting projects flourished.
In 1936 Baird and Will Murray of Lyleton petitioned P.F.R.A. to establish, the Lyleton Shelterbelt Association. With Baird as president and Will as secretary, the P.F.R.A. backed them to the extent of $5 per mile for planting, plus $20 per mile per year for three years for maintenance.
The department sent in Des Crossley as supervisor and under his direction the first plantings were completed in 1936. They consisted of one-half mile planting of 2300 trees on the farm of C. E. Fennell. In 1937, 27 farmers planted 35 miles of shelterbelts, which meant planting 375,000 trees. In 1938, 39 miles of trees were established. The varieties planted were caragana, ash, elm, maple and willow.
Originally the project was set up to run for five years, but the success of the program and the interest shown by the farmers caused it to be extended several times. It was finally terminated in 1959.
 


Near Lyleton, 1960. Photo by J. Warkentin courtesy the Manitoba Archives

During the periods 1936-1959 some 97 farmers planted 364 miles of field shelterbelts over a 60 square mile area, involving 2,386,000 trees. The total cost of the assistance supplied by the Federal Government approached $28,000. All the tree material was supplied free of charge from the Forest Nursery Station at Indian Head. The farmers planted most of the trees by hand, hoed them by hand for three years, as well as cultivating on both sides.

Additional Information: From Local Histories

It would be folly to try and name all those who gave their enthusiastic support to this project. It is sufficient to say that the majority of the residents in Township 1-28, and also the townspeople, believed that this enterprise would be the salvation of this area. As a result the Lyleton district would once again be a viable and prosperous farming community.
The New Era reports that in October 1937 Shelterbelt Association executive consisted of: President, Cecil Murray; Vice-President, Cliff Fennell and Secretary, Fred Hill.
Today these rows of trees are stately and arrow straight, attracting scores of visitors to Lyleton, just a few minutes' drive from the point where the boundary of Manitoba, Saskatchewan and North Dakota meet.
Over the years the field shelterbelts have proven beneficial in keeping the snow in the fields, conserving the precious moisture and slowing down the prairie winds. Some of those early plantings now tower 60 feet in the air. They are a living tribute to the far sightedness of the farmers of that era.
The following letter was received, following inquiries by the History Book Committee, from D. 1. Crossley, who was involved in the planning of the Lyleton Shelterbelts.
Dear Jim:

I note the history writing project in which the community is involving itself. This is a worthwhile endeavor and I will try to satisfy your request. It is hard to realize that forty-seven years have gone by since we started the Lyleton Field Shelterbelt project. You have provided the pertinent information on the "raison d'etre" for the establishment of this study. Four projects were initiated across the prairie provinces and your community had the initiative and drive to attract one of them
A prairie boy myself (Lloydminster, Alberta) I graduated in Forestry from the University of Toronto in the spring of 1935. At this time jobs were very difficult to obtain but I was fortunate to be offered a position under the P.F.R.A. in the completely new field of prairie silviculture, with headquarters at the Dominion Forestry Nursery Station at Indian Head, Saskatchewan, and was immediately assigned to the Lyleton project.
Southwestern Manitoba was completely new country to me. The light soils and the scarcity of precipitation over the preceding years made it a likely and challenging area for the establishment and subsequent study of shelterbelts to retain the drifting winter snows and to minimize soil movement and moisture evaporation.
Baird and Will Murray were my initial contacts with the newly formed Shelterbelt

Association and I was soon made to feel at home in the community, fully sympathetic with the problem it faced of retaining the viability of a farming community over the adversities it was experiencing. In an honest effort to record my perception of the task to which I had been assigned, it soon became evident that the initial membership was dedicated to the goals of the study project and that the farm lands to be removed from the agricultural land pool in order to support the shelterbelts to be established would be justified. On the other side of the fence were farmers who were not so convinced and held back. This was unfortunate because the success of the project might depend on the mass effect of a compact series of shelterbelts on adjoining farms. However, farm incomes during the 30's were at a minimum, and many of these unconvinced farmers were subsequently attracted to sign up, simply because of the federal financial assistance.
It cannot be recorded that the initial results were encouraging. Caragana was the initial tree species that was considered to have the best possibility of establishing under drought conditions. Spring survival following planting was comforting, but an un- expected danger awaited the advance of the season from blister beetle that were attracted to this new source of food with rapid defoliation the result. Emergency control measures were initiated by dusting with an appropriate insecticide, with moderate success. Those trees that succumbed had to be re- placed the following spring, only to require further dusting. These unexpected expenses were born fully by the Department. At this time more thought was given to the incorporation of other species that were immune to this insect's attacks. As a result, and because of the improving climate, the belts became established and form the stately avenues that dominate the rural scene today.
At this point I would like to record my own memories of my involvement with the Lyleton community during the initial five years. I was 24 years of age in 1935, single, just out of University and anxious to become a part of the type of community in which I was nurtured. I found it in Lyleton, when I became part of the Ma White household  which included Joe Mustard, local entrepreneur, Willard (Stoop) Allan, Seward Smith,  both of whom were federal entomologists battling with the study of grasshoppers, and other civil servants passing through from time to time. Ma White was not at all hesitant in showing disapproval of our exuberance and lack of piety, but I do think she regarded us as her family and I will be forever grateful that I had the opportunity to be part of it. She was an excellent cook, forever pressing further consumption upon us. In 1937 I took my bride with me and she was taken into the community as readily as I had been.
In the light of present day sophistication I am nostalgic over the simpler forms of entertainment that characterized the community at that time: the corn roasts we enjoyed at the old swimming hole, the Saturday night trips to Antler to enjoy a bottle of beer to the strains of Clyde McCoy and his" Sugar Blues" played over and over again on the Juke box, and the baseball games in which I was invited to participate whenever I happened to be in the community at the right time.
I could go on and on. 1940 was the last year of my participation in this project. Wartime obligation had to be satisfied, and upon discharge in 1945 I severed my employment with the Federal Dept. of Agriculture and took up employment elsewhere, but we will always remember the good years my wife and I spent among you.
Sincerely, D. Crossley.

 
Lyleton Shelterbelts

Originally Published in Vantage Points
http://vantagepoints.ca/pages/publications


Shelterbelts in the area around Lyleton ensured the viability of agriculture during years of drought 1936-1959.

The Need for a Wind Break

Stately rows of trees line the gravel roads near Lyleton, Manitoba. From the sky one could imagine the fields of the region resembling a striped tablecloth that has been draped over the landscape, changing colours with the seasons. Regardless of the poetry one could write while considering such a metaphor, the planting of the shelterbelts in and around Lyleton served a much more practical purpose.

 

The shelterbelts near the town of Lyleton are captured in this picture: looking northeast in August, 1979.

Settlers first arrived in the area of Lyleton in the 1880s. They found in front of them an almost endless expanse of native prairie grasses, bending to the will of the wind. The intended purpose of the settlers who populated the region was to farm. Therefore, these native grasses were tilled under without a thought to what their absence would mean: prairie winds gusting unhindered across the landscape.

The PFRA

In 1935 the Government of Canada launched the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Act (PFRA). The following year two Lyleton locals, Baird and Will Murray, petitioned the PFRA to establish the Lyleton Shelterbelt Association. The PFRA provided $5 per mile of planted trees, with an additional $20 per mile, per year for the following three years of maintenance.

Stately Rows of Trees

The first of many shelterbelts to be planted in the region was completed in 1936. It consisted of 2,300 trees which were planted in a row measuring half a mile on C. E. Fennell’s farm.

At first, caragana trees were thought to be the most appropriate tree to combat soil drifting due to severe drought. However, the caraganas ended up suffering from local blister beetles, which regarded the trees as an exciting new source of food. Additional varieties of trees planted afterwards were ash, elm, maple and willow.

In line with the hopes of local residents, the trees were found to be very effective at keeping soil erosion to a minimum. They also kept winter snows from blowing away, conserving more moisture on the fields. The shelterbelts were instrumental in retaining the viability of agriculture in the region during the Dirty Thirties and afterwards.

The trees also changed the aesthetics of the region. Where previously a vast area of open cropland had existed, there appeared 30- or 40-acre strips of land, bordered on each side by arrow-straight rows of trees. Wildlife, too, found the trees to be an attractive addition to the region. Moose, elk, deer and sometimes cougars have found accommodating habitats within the shelterbelts. New species of birds have found homes in the tree branches, adding their song to the a ea. The region continues to be a popular birding destination today.
 
The Project is Extended

The project was set up to run for only five years, but due to its success it was extended several times, and ran for a total of 23 years. By the project’s end in 1959, 97 farmers had been involved with the planting of 364 miles of shelterbelt, made up of 2,386,000 trees, over an area of 60 square miles. The expense of the project to the federal government was $28,000. Most of the trees were planted by hand and maintained using hand-held hoes. Many of the shelterbelts planted in the 30s and 40s remain today, though the need for them is not as critical as it was in the years of dire drought. Recently farmers have begun tearing down the trees in order to increase the amount of land available for crops.

Author: Teyana Neufeld
Sources:
Neale Daniels. Personal Interview. 21 June 2010.
RM of Edward History Book Committee. Harvests of Time. Altona: Friesen Printers, 1983. pp 83-85.
Photo: RM of Edward History Book Committee. pp 84.