128 AFFORESTATION OF WASTE LANDS. [Jcne 



being no object) ; 5 or 6 feet apart will suffice. But if the case is 

 the reverse (small wood having a ready market), it would be wisdom 

 to make the best of the land ; therefore plant 3^ feet apart. If 

 there is a fair price for hardwood, and soil suitable, plant trees of 

 this kind 10 or 15 feet apart, and make up the intermediate spaces 

 with pines and larch. But if the pines and larch be more in 

 requisition than hardwood in the district, and the soil suitable to 

 their growth, set the hardwood still farther apart, even to 40 feet, 

 and fill up the intermediate space with the pines and larch. The 

 old system of planting indiscriminately equal proportions of Scotch 

 fir and larcli should be avoided, as their nature and requirements 

 are very different. 



Hillside and Tableland. — Being only moderately sheltered, trees 

 should be closer planted than those on sheltered sites, laying aside 

 all consideration as regards the sale of thinnings, keeping only the 

 good of the plantation in view. The distance we would recommend 

 here would be about 4 feet apart. 



Moorland and> Hill. — Being high-lying and exposed, the planter's 

 great aim is to get the trees to shelter one another as quickly as 

 possible ; regardless as to Mdiether a ready market be found for the 

 thinnings or not. The greatest distance apart here should be 3^ 

 feet, and if much exposed 3 feet. 



As we have already said, where shelter is of no object, the 

 distance apart should be regulated by local demands ; but where it 

 is, the future w^elfare of the plantation should be the main considera- 

 tion. Several kinds of timber trees thrive upon each class of soil ; 

 therefore the timber which is most in demand in that district 

 should be planted. 



The cost of making plantations of trees on the waste lands of the 

 kingdom will depend upon the area of enclosure, the amount of 

 drainage necessary, and the kind of herbage with which the ground 

 is covered. Afforesting on an extensive scale will, for obvious 

 reasons, cost less per acre than when small enclosures are dealt with. 



The following is an example of the cost per acre of enclosing, 

 draining, and planting with larch, Scots fir, and mixed hardwood, a 

 tract of 500 acres of the waste land in the north of Scotland, 

 applicable also to the liillsides of Ireland. 



Approximate rate per acre for enclosing with a pro- 

 portion of each kind of fence described, say 

 20 yards at Is. 3d. per yard, . . .£150 



1^0. do. for main road formed, say 7 yards 



at lOd. per yard, . . . . . 5 10 



Carry forward, . . £1 10 10 



