446 REPORT ON TREES NOT LIABLE TO BE DESTROYED BY RABBITS. 



EEPOET ON TREES NOT LIABLE TO BE DESTROYED BY 



RABBITS. 



By C. Y. Michie, Forester, Cullen House, Cullen. 



[Premium — Five Sovereigns.] 



The destruction of forest trees, shrubs, and hedges, &c., is so 

 great, and in most cases such an increasing evil, as to call serious 

 attention to the subject. From the circumstance of so much 

 land being under cultivation, summer food is thereby abundantly 

 provided ; but when harvest is over, and the turnip crops stored, 

 or the fields occupied with shepherds, and their dogs and flocks, 

 rabbits and hares have no retreat but the plantation, and hither 

 they repair, both for safety and food, and the plantation suffers 

 in consequence. 



The destruction of forest trees, shrubs, and hedges is much 

 greater than appears to the cursory observer ; but it is a subject 

 which those who can best speak upon seldom do, from reasons 

 unnecessary to be explained. Which sorts of forest trees to plant, 

 and how to plant them, so as to be most secure against the 

 destruction of rabbits, is a twofold subject, well calculated to 

 agitate and perplex the minds of all interested and reflective 

 persons at the present day. 



Finding that year after year the crop last planted had fallen 

 a prey to rabbits, after a great amount of labour and expense 

 had been bestowed upon it ; and, generally speaking, the more 

 labour bestowed and greater the expense, so in proportion was 

 the destruction and consequent loss ; it, therefore, occurred to the 

 writer, as a matter of economy, that it would be well to lessen the 

 expense, so that if plants could not be preserved, money might at 

 least be saved ; reasoning thus — If one plant out of ten escapes, 

 for every hundred trees planted ten will be saved ; and the 

 smaller the plants the greater their safety. It also appeared that 

 the larger (not exceeding 4 feet) the plants the greater the destruc- 

 tion and money loss upon each. Another self-evident circum- 

 stance was, that wherever the ground was newly dressed or in 

 any way disturbed, as in trenching, paring, pitting, pulling off 

 the heath, or cutting whins, broom, &c, all such operations ren- 

 dered the ground more attractive to rabbits ; hence almost every 

 tree planted under such circumstances fell a ready prey, and 

 were frequently destroyed within twenty-four hours of the time 

 of planting. 



Under the circumstances above detailed, a gentleman suggested 

 to the writer the following plan, and which accomplishes all 

 that was anticipated of it : — 



First, To select small plants, 1-year seedlings 1-year bedded, 

 at a cost of from one-third to one-half that of transplanted trees. 



