396 EEPOET ON LARCH FORESTS. 



The trees are situated along the margins of the stream Ban vie, 

 and though sheltered for a time by the rising ground on either 

 side, yet as soou as they had reared their heads thirty or forty 

 feet, the cutting winds had blasted, broken, and contorted their 

 tops. 



The soil is a dry gravelly loam, resting on gravel and stones ; 

 altitude above the sea about 500 feet. These large larches at 

 Blair and Dunkeld are so far distant from each other, and from 

 other trees, as to render their condition similar to that of single 

 trees. None of them have ever been pruned, or in any way cut, 

 save when wind-broken branches occurred. Some of the large 

 branches near the ground are sufficient to make railway sleepers, 

 and spread a great distance all round. The circumstances which 

 have favoured the growth of the above are briefly these : — Dry 

 soil and subsoil ; open, but not severely exposed situations ; 

 abundance of room ; free from the influence of the sea and 

 spring frosts ; young plants well branched and rooted ; ebb 

 planting, or means whereby the roots are kept upon the surface. 



In addition to the trees above described, there are many more 

 worthy of description, both in the grounds about Blair and Dun- 

 keld, whose ages vary from 117 to 127 years, and contain at 

 least 200 cubic feet. One tree, on the south banks of the river 

 Tay, is worthy of special notice ; it is by far the finest grown 

 larch the writer has yet seen. It stands from the margin of the 

 river sixty feet, and at an altitude of six feet above it. The soil 

 is a dry sandy loam, mixed with gravelly stones. The tree is 

 120 years old, 115 feet in height, girth at four feet from the 

 ground 14 feet, and contains 230 cubic feet of timber. 



A class of trees still younger than the above, having been 

 planted in the year 1759, in detachments, about Dunkeld, — the 

 greater part of the trees of this age have been cut down on 

 account of showing signs of decay. They were planted as a 

 plantation, hence less room afforded them than those as single 

 trees for ornamentation. 



Those trees remaining of what was planted in 1759, are mostly 

 in a backgoing condition, caused in some measure by want of 

 room ; though sufficiently well grown as a crop for profit, they 

 are not so well calculated to stand till old age. 



His Grace John Duke of Athole planted in various ways 410 

 acres, between the years 1859 and 1774, the greater part of 

 which was cut down several years ago, at various stages of per- 

 fection, but in general they proved remunerative. A large 

 enclosure was planted near Blair Athole, between the years 

 1777 and 1782, being now between eighty-five and ninety years 

 planted. Thinning was attended to when about twenty years 

 planted, but in this case it was evidently too long delayed. The 

 trees in this plantation were planted between five feet and six 



