404 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTtJRIST. 



[December i, 1883, 



per cent. As a show of timber there is nothing finer on 

 the hills than the straight clean stems of these beauti- 

 ful Acacias, crowned with their ample heads of foliage. 

 Felled, the timber shows a rich black heartwood oc- 

 casionally mottled brown, equal to the desciiption of the 

 tree as it occurs in Australia where it is used for furn- 

 iture, ornamental panelling and the variety of uses to 

 which a light tough ornamental wood can be put. The 

 advantage of Aincia mclaiioxiiloH wood is that while very 

 dark and often richly marked aud while tough and close 

 in the grain, it is "at the same time light weighing 

 when dry only from 36 lb. (young Nilgiri wood) to 44 

 lb. (Australia) per cubic foot. The heartwood appears 

 as a black streak when the tree is under ten 

 years old, as at Koneood, and in large old trees there is 

 comparatively Uttle waste from the whitewood. liings can be 

 traced in the wliitewood, but in the heartwood, as is some- 

 times the case with other trees, they become indistinct. On 

 account of tbe fine shade afforded by Acacias, the soil under 

 them is free from the tangled undergi-owth which character- 

 ises the Eucalypt plantations ; there is a f.airshow of humus 

 underthc.4cacw me!ano.ri/lo» tree and usually some naturalre- 

 production. In the Bleak-lioHse plantation the trees from self- 

 sown seedlings axi numerous enough and large enough to re- 

 quire a table apart. A gully near the sample area, hut not 

 eluded in it, bat a very fair show of self-sown seedlings of 

 all ages. Left quite aloae, this plantation would possibly 

 resolve itself into a few scattered trees, and into shoks of 

 Acacia mdanoxtilon filling up the hollows aud ravines. 

 Natural reproduction of Acacia inc^annxi/Ion from seed aud 

 root shoots may be observed in many situations near Oota- 

 camund and Coonoor ; the tree is not intolerant of shade 

 hke the Eucalypts, and seems well fitted for sowings and 

 plantings impoverished shola.s, or wherever the natural 

 forest is worked sy.stematically for its improvement or for 

 a revenue. It may be mentioned here that nowhere in the 

 Eucalypt plantations is there any evidence of natural re- 

 production from seedlings, while natural reproduction 

 from coppice shoots is equally at fault in the Jlelauoxylon 

 plantations. 



The elevation of this plantation was that of most 

 parts of Nuivara Eliya Plain, (5,384 feet. It seems 

 clear that if Acacia mclanoxylon were kept clear of 

 the loranllms parasite it would be a valuable timber 

 for our uplands. It would prubably flourish en the 

 patanns which stretch anay from Nuwara Eliya ii.to 

 Uva. What we miss from ibis report are the results 

 of experiments with the Australian trees, which 



At present, are used exclusively for firewood, for which 

 purpose the stem, branches aud twigs .nre ali sold. 

 After giving a table of acre increments, Mr. Hutchins 

 states : — 



ViTiat appears established beyond a doubt from this table 

 of acre-increments is that a Btiie-guin plii/itatioii, icliether 

 planted 6' y, 6' or 9' v, 9', n-iU, if fiiUij stocked, at 10 

 ilcttfK show a unntliofXi tones per acre ptr annum. The 

 Batliri figure indicates' that the Acre-iucrement may reach 

 12 tons as early as b years in the case of a phintation 

 planted 6' x C lilac!; -hinlric however, the next in point 

 of age, weather owing to a poorer soil or a lower eleva- 

 tion, has an acre-increment of a little under 7 tons at 6 

 years. The next plantation on the list. Ok! Forest, is one 

 of the best on the hUls. Its acre-increment of just under 

 12 tons at 9 years is from a piece of planting not ubofc the 

 areraqe in appearance, and selected, us has been explained, 

 because it was free from um-ecorded thinuings. It may he 

 asserted positively that the whole of the 2U0 acres of the 

 Old Forest plantation is now making wood at a rate of not 

 less than 12 tons per acre per annum. 



Korieood plantation, the next on the list, has the highest 

 acre-iucrement obtained, namely, 134 tous. Of this figure 

 iust under a ton comes from thinnings. It may be, 

 to some extent, to careful thinning that this plantation 

 owes its high increments. The next plantation, Malia, 

 planted at the same distance 9' x 9', and at practically 

 the same elevation, has within a very small fiaction the 

 same acre-increment .as Xorirood. if we subtract tlie thm- 

 nings at Korwood. The figurf s of standing stock per acre, 

 as has been mentioned, show a close con-espoudence, 

 Nonfood having 6.829 cubic feet per acre of actual stock 

 BOW en the ground, while JS,ali« has 6.960 cubic feet. 



Again : — 



The acre-increment of Acacia rnelnnoxylon at ten years 

 is one-half that of Eiicali/ptiis gloliidus at the same age ; 

 and there is reason to beheve that afterwards the Melan- 

 oxylon acre-increment rises slowly whi le the blue-gum acre- 

 increment remains stationary, or possibly declines gradually. 



ACBE-INCREMEN'T OF ACACIA DeaLB.^TA OE "WaTTLE. 



A quarter of an acre of "Wattle coppice 4 years old at 

 .ff?efl^'-Ao»^<f plantation was felled ckan, the firewood weighed, 

 and the area which was irregular surveyed with a plane 

 table. The figure ebtaiued, 8154 tons, it must be re- 

 membered, represents green-wood trees and leaves, and to 

 be compared with other acre-increments which refer to 

 dry wood it must be reduced to about 3 tons. All coppice 

 (aud A\'attle is no exception to the rule) grows vei-y rapidly 

 at first, but after a few years its acre-increment is ex- 

 ceeded by that of high forest. It is probable that the 

 acre-increment from "Wattle coppice never rises beyond 3 

 tons per auuum, and that at ten years it is about J that 

 of the blue-gum. 



Dlose planting is defended as resisting wind, but 

 9x0 cost only one half 6 «< 6, and the trees grow better. 

 To quote again : — 



In the large Government C'asuarina plantations in My- 

 sore, the planting is now done uniformly 9' f^ 9' ; it was 

 formerly done 1-5' x 15'. On account of the difiiculty in 

 keeping dowii the grass and the slower growth of Casu- 

 arina as compared with blue-gum, even closer planting 

 than 9' x 9' would be advisable there, if it could be 

 done economically. Planting 6' k 6' would be considered 

 exti'avagant. 



The Ei'-Mli/ptus globuhts is a tree which appears on the 

 Xilgiris to require plejity of light. It is the same in the 

 temperate climate of Australia where the Eucalypt forests 

 are described bj^ Darwin as strikiuly sparse and open. At 

 low elevations in South India the blue-gum appears to be 

 less intolerant of shade. 



As proving the value of thinning so as to give space 

 and light : 



Bathri, which is not too crowded for a young planta- 

 tion, has an average growth of 10 feet per year up to 

 five years, and likewise yor\''Ooil of Sh feet per year up 

 to teu years. General Morgan considers that during the 

 time that the Kucalyptns f/lolndus grows rapidly in height 

 the average is about 8 feet per year. It may be con- 

 cluded, therefore, that in those plantations which, owing 

 to a neglect of thinning, are now suffering from over- 

 crowding, not only has there been a direct loss, as has been 

 seen, in the production of wood per acre, but the individu- 

 al trees, so far from having been drawn up aud put 

 into a good shape for timber, have sutfered in their 

 gi-owtli to an extent that their average height is now less 

 than if theij had. been grown less crowded. It is possible 

 that tile inequalities in growth observable in the Blue- 

 gum plantations on the Nilgiris may he due in part to 

 changed conditions, 'Australian seed being exclusively 

 used ; but in any ease the value of thinning as a means 

 of getting rid of trees of poor growth remains. The fact 

 of the natural forests of Gum trees being strikingly sparse 

 and open has been alreadj' jioticed. 



We have devoted so much space to this subject, 

 because the question of fastgiowing timber trees for 

 fuel, tea chests aud building puiposes has become an 

 urgent one, now that so large a number of old 

 coffee estates from which timber has utterly disap- 

 peared are being converted into tea plantations, if 

 the timber proved suitable — and there eau -be uo 

 question as to fuel, and but little doubt as to general 

 purposes, — the Australian trees, especially the blue 

 gums, have beyond all others the great merit of 

 rapid giowth. Up to the tenth year, when the 

 trees will yield useful timber, the Eucalyptus glolmliin 

 grows in India at the average rate of about S feet 

 per annum in height .and about 3 inches in girth. 

 It is quite possible, indeed, that, in favourable circum- 

 stances in ( eyion, the average perpendicular growth 

 for ten years may reach an average for the whole 

 period of ton inches per annum, the girth at r> feet 

 from the ground being about 3 feet. Experience on 



