wo 



An J a5 there are fmall hop^s of this being refnecjfed 

 hy "thofe inrrufted with the care of the public Wood 

 fince their private" mtereft is ib much better advance 





O 



fown feparate in lands which arc hiclofed, "where c'at- 

 tle are not permitted to com^i, and at a diftance from 

 the habitation. ' ' '-■■ -■ ' - " '-' " • 



bythedc[troyingthecimber,whichtheywereappm - Upon fandy or rocky foils,' the Scotch Pine will clirive 



topreferye: therefore, unlels private perfons can be f 'ekceedinslv, and tunVto^reat ndv.nm^. u. rU. 



prevailed on to improve their ciTates, by encouraging 

 the growth of timber, it is greatly to be feared;^ that 

 m an age there will be a want of it for the fupply of 



the navy; which7'^'hehcvcr iFhappens, muft put a 

 period to the trade of this country, /'*-^'' - -S "'.*'i 



It has'Been often urged, by perfons whofe judgment 

 ' in other affairs might be depended on, tLat the great 

 plantations, which, for feveral years palt, have been 

 carried on in feveral parts of this kingdom, will be of 

 public benefit, by the propagation of timber ; but'in 

 this they are' greatly millaken ; for in mod of the 

 lantations which have been made for years'paft^lTiere 

 has been little regard had to the propagation of tim- 

 ber Tpiefent fliade and flielteV 'have been principally 

 confidered ; and in order to oWaih thefe foon, great 

 numbers of trees have been taken out of Woods, 

 hedge rows, 8cc. which, if they had remained in their 

 firft fituation, mio-htin time have afforded OTod timber: 

 but by being tranfplanted large, are abfolutcly rendered 

 unfit for any ufe but fuel ; lo that the'great qtiantily 

 of plantations which have been made, I fear, will ra- 

 ther prejudice than be of ufe, to the' improvement of 

 timber ^ nor is there any other method of increafing tlie 

 ufeful timber of this country, than by fowing the feeds 

 inthe places 'where they are to reiTiain •, or in fuch fi- 

 ■ tuations, where there are plenty of Oaks in the lieigh- 

 bourliood, if the ground is properly fenced^ to keep 

 - bu t" (battle and vc'rmir:,' the Acorns which dro'pTrohi 

 ihofe trees will foon produce plenty of young trees; 

 wl^ich, if properly taken care of, will foon grow to 

 vVoods. 





The two mofi: fubftantial tinibers of this country are 

 the Oak and Cheftnut, though the latter has been of 

 Jate years almoft entirely deftroyed in England, fo that 

 there are fcarce any remains of trees of fize in the 

 ; Woods at prefent ; but there can be no doubt of this 

 tree having been one of the molt common trees of this 

 country, as may be proved by the old buildings in' 

 moft parts of England, in which the greateft part of 

 the timber is Cheftnut.--^ But as I have already treated 

 largely of the method of propagating both thefe trees 

 for profit, under their refpeftive titles, I fliall not re- 

 peat ichere. Next to thefe, the Elm is efteemed as a 

 profitable timber ; but of thefe there are few dulti- 

 vatcd in Woods, efpecially in the fouth part of Eng- 

 land, where they chiefly grow in hedge rows, or plan- 

 tations near houfes ; but in the north-wefcpart of Eng- 

 land, there are niimbers' of very large trees of the 

 Witch-Elm grov/ing in parks, and fome in Woods, 

 ,.A,s,Jf that tree wa^a native of this country, which has 

 .,.Ueen much doubted ; though as this tree propagates 

 itfelf by feeds, it may'be deemed an.i5dIgenous plant 



...The Beech is another tree comrhon in the Woods, ef- 

 \ pecially upon. .the. chalky hills " of Buckinghamftiire, 



Kent, Suffex, and Ilampfhire, where there are fome 

 4: Very-large VVoods, entirely of this foft;" fome of which 

 ;,jiiivc been of Jong ilanding, as appears by the age of 

 -. Jthe tree?/, but whether this tree is a native of this 



country, has been a point often difpnted.^ \.J^ '^r^' 

 ■Alh 



i B 



r.Tl^c 'Alh is.,a.:yery prptii:able,,t£ee^ and of quick 

 •t^rowth;;, fp that, in lefs than an age, the trees mil ar- 

 /xiye U) a large fize from the feeds ; therefore *a perlbn 

 I may hope to reap. the profits:of his labour, who foWs 

 \ the feeds ; but this is not a beautiful tree to ftarid near 

 ; a habitation, bcingkte ittlhelfpring inputting outits 

 leaves, 'rtnd the firft thaj:.lhed3 them in^autumn ; nor is 

 • a tViendly tree to whatever grows, near It, "the'roits 

 -drawing away all- the nourifhraent. .'pf thegrourtd, 

 ' whereby. tJ.ie, trees, or plants which grow near are de- 

 .; priv^d,pf it ; fo that where the Alh-tree grows "jn 

 hedge rows, die hedge rows in afew yejirs are.entirely 

 , dcflrayed ; and if they are in pafture grounds, and 

 ■ the cows "browze on them, the butter made with their 



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'exceedingly, and turn to' great advantage to the 



; planter, provided the plantS are'planted'young, and 



treated in the manner directed iri the arncle^Pixus/to 



which the' reader is d cfired to turn, to avbiS repetition. 



There arealfo feveral aquatic trees, whicli aYc Very pro- 



cable to thole who have low rnarihy lands, wherethe 



harder^kinds of timber will riot thrivcV thefe are the 



• Poplars" of feveral forts^' die Willow, Alder, S^c." bu: 



as thefe, and all the otl?e'r kinds of trees^ have been 



fully treated of, both as to their propaVyatbH and ufes 



and alio an account of the difilM-ent loils in which each 



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will Uiriyc beft, uriae'r their ^erpeftive'titlcs, theVea'der 

 is referred to them for farther information T^ndlfliall 



' next fredt of the geri'e'ral jhahageirienr of Woods, of 

 whatever kinds of trees ;t?ie^; arc "coiiip^^^ , 

 Wlier'e there are your/g AYoods, great care muft be 

 taken of the fences" jfqt ii^ cattle fhould get in among 

 the trees, efpecially v/hife,t!vcya^^^ young, they will 

 in a fboft time do infinite daniage to them, by browz- ' 

 ing on the branclie^' '6i b'arkin'^ the trees ; fo that 

 during the firft twenty years of flieir grov/th, they 

 Ihould .be'iecufcd' from liarcs" and rabbets, other- 



' wife in ftvere froft, or v/hen the ground ^ is covered 



^ withfnow,wherebythcyifedeprivedof otTiei" food, they 

 get into theWoods, and eatbif the barkfrom the young 

 trees, and gnaw all the branches within their reach ; 

 fo that in'a few days, where there are plenty of thefe 

 animals, there may Be fuch deftruction made amon 



• tne young trees, as cannot be retrieved, but py cut- 

 ting them down t6 fe^^gVbund, whi(5KWill be a Idfs 

 of feveral years ; therefore thofe perfons who have the 

 care of young Woods, Ihould be Very " diligent m 

 frofty weather, in looking over the trees, and flopping 

 the holes in the fences, to keep out all vermin. 

 Another care to be taken of young Woods, is the 

 thinning the trees from time to time, as they increafe 



,m their growth; but in doin^ of this, there muft be 





great caution ufedi for it fhould b6 gradually per- 

 formed, fo as not to open the trees too much, to let 

 the cold air among them, which will greatly retard 

 their growth ; nor (hould the trees be left fo clofe, 

 as to draw each other up like May-poles, but rather 

 ^ obferve a medium in thia work, cuttino- down a fev/- 

 • ^ each year, according as there may be neceflity for, it, 

 being careful, not to permit thofe toftahdj which may 

 fpoil the growth of the neighbouring trees, always ob- 

 ferving to leave thofe trees which are the moft pro- 

 mifing. : :- :. ^ ^ ■' . .^ ^ . .r-. . 



The young trees m thefe Woods fhould not be lop- 

 ped or pruned, for the more they are cut, the lefs they 

 ,wiir increafe in bulk ; everj branch which is ctit off, 

 will rob the tree of its nourifliment, in proportion to 

 the fize of the branch;" therefore" the hatchet ftiould 



* 



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 1 



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■ not be fufl^ercd to come into young Woods^ unlefs i 

 theTiarids of Ikilful perfons;-' - ^^^''^>r'^'^;. ■ ■ V 

 ^^ Wherd perfons Jiaye more regard to the future welfare 

 V- of the timber than their immediate profit, the under 

 ViiWood Ihould be grubbed up "as the trees advance, 

 . that^the roots may, have the whole benefit of the foil, 

 ' and their ftems enjoy tHe free air; without which, 



I , ^thVir ft'emf are generally toVt-red with Mofs, and their 

 j v^rowth greatly ftinted ; as may be obfejved in all fuch 

 * :-:j Woods*.' where there Is'anv ouantltv of under Wonri 



t 



j nr^maining ;' in which places it is rarely foilrid, that 

 I sithe trees do ever grow to a ftrge fize ; therefore where 

 ! •••large timber 'is defired, the" trees muft have room to 



m 



iikwill be bad ; for which rcafon the Afh Ihould be ' Xeparatcly prcferved. 



extend their roots and branches, without which it can- 

 not be expe(5led ; but from a covetous^temper, many 

 ! i,people let theirurider Wood Vemairi"as long as it will 

 i kJive ; for as the timber increafeS, the"' under Wood 

 i ..will be gradually decayingy by the fliade and drip of 

 i ..'the large'trees ; fo that by this method the timber 

 ' -ifufl^ers more in a few years, than the value of the un- 

 j *,der Wood"; therefore, by e?ideavouring'to have both, 

 i -neither of them can be fo sood, as where thev are 



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