Jim,

>SNIP
>>Ok.. really seriously here... Load some helicopters with this mulch or a bunch of tanker/sprayer trucks and squitr the hill sides where fires have happened or where there's some other reason to replant. The mulch/newspaper/seed/coloring/fertilizer mix is poretty efficient.
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>But that shouldn't be called "seedlings". That's seeds.

Ahh.. Perhaps so. Hadn't considered the differences there..

>I saw an amateur "documentary" on kids planting seedlings and it was not a pretty/quick job. Jerry's 100 sqft per seems about right, but things aren't nice and flat and machine-capable, and I would say the rate per person was more like 50 per hour. Not to mention the black flies and other biting bugs, wet feet, legs and arms, heavy bags of seedlings, long treks into the bush to get started, etc.

Several years ago there were some Christian homes similar to the hippie communes. The name of this particular group was Shiloh and they were very predominant in Washington state and Oregon. One of the ways they earned monies to support themselves was planting trees for Weyerhauser. Apparently they'd plant thousands a day but it was real stoop (read: hard work) labor. That was almost 30 years ago now. So I know the big timber companies have these kinds of programs though I don't know with any certainty how this is done today.

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>Yes, I thought I had typed 'by 1 person' but my mind got ahead of my fingers.

<g>

I hate it when that happens..

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>McDonalds has had 40+ years and thousands of outlets, each open more hours daily than planters plant, as well on days that planters can't/don't work.

Sure, but I was just kidding around.

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>Maybe if the 5 bill. counts planting seeds AND planting seedlings they might come close? I don't know.

That would make more sense to me. I know that Craig worked for a timber related company a few years back. Perhaps he has better 'inside' knowledge.

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>>Trees like this are really nothing more than a crop.