220 ON NATURAL COPPICE "WOOD. 



length of affirming that it so seriously affects the growth of the 

 timber crop that tlie better plan is to grub out the trees that are 

 periodically thinned out, rather than leave them to send up 

 coppice shoots ; and allege that the benefits to the timber crop 

 by the removal of the stools more than pays the expense of 

 grubbing. While not recommending the growth of underwood 

 as a generally remunerative crop, we are inclined to doubt if it is 

 not much more profitable to allow the stools to grow than to grub 

 them out. Where there is a good market for the sale of wands 

 and rods, such as, for example, in the counties of Stirling and 

 Dumbarton, the trees should be kept muelt thinner on the ground, 

 and the stools, if suitable, allowed to send up shoots, which, if cut 

 clean over when size for wands, are a profitable crop, and are 

 thus removed before they can to any extent become injurious 

 to the timber trees. 



Unless where the trees are specially thinned out for the growth 

 of underwood, the coppice shoots are to a great extent under the 

 control of the timber crop ; hence there is practically no necessity 

 for going to expense of grubbing. No really practical man expects 

 to have a profitable crop of underwood with a full crop of timber 

 trees. But there are always exceptional cases where it is well to 

 encourage its growth, such as open spaces that accidentally occur 

 in hardwood plantations ; and also not unfrequently in orna- 

 mental belts and clumps that are composed chiefiy of old trees, 

 standing at a considerable distance apart. 



Natural coppice, when grown as underwood, should bs thinned 

 out after two years' growth, leaving about six shoots on each stool, 

 and except in plantations where the trees are standing very wide 

 apart, these shoots should be clean cut over after from six to 

 eight years' growth. If a regular method of this kind is carried 

 out the timber crop will not be greatly injured, and in districts 

 where there is a good sale for coppice produce it will much more 

 than pay the expense of growing it. 



ON THE COKSICAN FIR. 



By John Nisbet, Assistant Conservator of Forests, British Burma. 



[Premium — Tlie Medium Gold Medal.] 



Until the year 1583 the Corsican fir was regarded as identical 

 with the Scotch fir {Pinus sylvestris), when Clusius {Flora Nieder- 

 oesterreichs) called attention to the differences existing between 

 the trees. Poiret, in 1804, again dealt with this subject, and 

 gave to the former the name Pinus laricio; by Host it was in 

 1826 called Pinus nigricans; by Hijss in 1830 Pinus austriaca. 

 Christ ("Europ. Abietin," page 15) subdivides the species Pinus 

 laricio (Poiret) as follows : — 



