64 ON THE AGIUCULTUEE OF 



the cold in the winter are less intense than in the interioiv 

 while low down by the seaboard snow seldom lies longer than 

 two or three days. On the Sidlaw Hills and the slopes leading 

 np to them the climate of conrse is colder. The rainfall is 

 greater, and snow often lies to a considerable depth for a pretty 

 long period. In the valley of Strathmore the climate is genial 

 and moderately dry, being well adapted to the cultivation of 

 wheat. Along the Braes of Angus, owing to their close prox- 

 imity to the Grampian range, the climate is even more rigorous 

 than on the Sidlaws. The winter cold is more severe and the 

 rainfall greater, while these parts are also more subject to heavy 

 falls of snow. Throughout the mountainous region the summer 

 weather is generally warm — sometimes very hot, and for the 

 most part moderately dry. In winter, however, it is stormy in 

 the extreme, — so much so, indeed, tliat during the dead of the 

 winter sheep-farmers have to withdraw their flocks from the 

 higher glens. The climate of the hilly districts of Kincardine 

 resembles very closely that of the corresponding parts of Forfar ; 

 but with regard to the climate of its arable parts, the northern 

 county has not been so highly favoured as the southern. The 

 coast of Kincardine is colder than that of Forfar. The coast- 

 line is very rocky and steep, while the land rises rapidly as it 

 recedes. The Garvock Hill rises to a height of 915 feet, and 

 yet its highest peak is little more than 3h miles inland. At 

 Bervie and several other points the land reaches a height of 

 about 400 feet within a mile from the sea ; while, generally 

 speaking, the elevation one mile inland averages from 180 to 220 

 feet. The Howe of the Mearns enjoys a more mild and more 

 equable climate than any other part of the county, and yet even 

 there it is not equal to the Howe of Strathmore in Forfarshire. 

 This is due partly to the fact that the Howe of the Mearns lies 

 nearer to the Grampians, that it is farther north, and that it is 

 not so well wooded as the valley farther south. The greater 

 portion of the parishes of Fordoun, Glenbervie, and Fetteresso 

 are rather bare, the climate on the higher and more inland parts 

 of the latter two being cold and late. Snow seldom lies long on 

 the coast or in the Howe of Mearns, but on the Garvock Hill 

 and the higher districts of the interior it often falls in con- 

 siderable quantities, drifts flercely, and lies for pretty long 

 periods. The higher parts of Nigg, Banchory-Devenick, Mary- 

 culter, and Durris are similar in regard to climate to the 

 heights of Glenbervie and Fetteresso. The section of Kincar- 

 dineshire lying on the north side of the Dee, part of the parish of 

 Drumoak and the parish of Banchory-Ternan, is favoured with 

 perhaps the warmest climate of any part of the county. Sheltered 

 from the north by the Hill of Fare, it has a southern exposure, and 

 is well wooded, with a free porous soil. The slopes on the south 



