158 Natural Forests and the Growth of Cones. [Sess 
forests of Caledonia. Many changes have taken place since — 
' 
those days. These ancient forests were gradually cleared 
away to make room for corn-fields, and many generations of - 
trees have been planted (on limited areas), have grown toll 
maturity, and been cut down for their timber. On some ~ 
parts of the Grampians “ still stand” a few patches of “the — 
forest primeval,” and in many mosses the roots of trees, the — 
remains of old forests, are found in abundance. A curious — 
and interesting example of this was brought to light not far — 
from here, when the new Aviemore and Inverness Railway — 
was being made. East from Tomatin, and between it and e 
The Slochd (slock), the railway passes through a deep cutting — 
of moss and bluish clay. In the moss, which will be nearly © 
10 feet deep, are the remains (tree roots standing in sitw) of © 
three successive forests. After the first one was cut down, a — 
deep layer of moss had been formed completely covering the — 
roots. On this a new forest had been planted, and so on, the 
third also being completely covered, the country for miles now — 
presenting the appearance of an ordinary heath-covered moss, 
on the outskirts of which people have been cutting their peats — 
for generations, I suppose. In many other mosses in this t 
neighbourhood the roots of trees are quite common, but mostly ; 
of birch, of which there are large natural plantations and 
scattered trees in the glen, and these add much to its beauty. © 
A number of iiiigaes young plantations, mostly of fir, are 
rapidly growing up around, giving more beauty to the glen, as 
well as affording shelter for game; and they will in course of t 
time produce useful timber, fihoes young forests afford goodly é 
opportunities for the study of the growth of trees. 
The fir tree is moncecious (unisexual), the male and female ; 
flowers being separate, but on the same tree, though it is quite 3 
common to see a tree appropriated almost or altogether ex- 
clusively by flowers of one sex. The male or pollen bearing © 
flowers arrange themselves in dense spikes of very small 
catkins at the base of the part which has grown during the © 
season, and preferably on trees where the season’s growth on 
branches and branchlets is very short, and they shed their 
pollen in clouds, forming the well-known “sulphur” of rustics, — 
The embryo female cones form close outside the buds on the i 
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