WOODS OF THE NOVAK ESTATE. 45 



weeds. The experiment may at once be tried, in a locality suited 

 to the Douglas fir, to plant up some patches of brackens with this 

 tree, in order to ascertain whether, and within what time, it can 

 overcome the objectionable growth, either without aid or otherwise; 

 the Douglas fir grows rapidly, and stands a considerable amount of 

 shade. 



When once the woods are all fully stocked, there will be no room 

 for grazing ; but in the meantime it is probably more in the interest 

 of the game to keep the farm stock off the ground than it would 

 be to prohibit the keeping down of brackens, which in some places 

 are dense and tall enough to render it extremely difficult to 

 establish young trees among them. Unless the weeds in such 

 places can be effectually dealt with, one-fourth part of the woods of 

 the future may be little better than bracken-covered blanks ; and 

 some sacrifice of the shooting interests for a few years seems called 

 for in order to avoid the loss which this would entail. Planting 

 work is completed before 15th April, and does not interfere with 

 the game. 



Existing conditions do not warrant the immediate abandonment 

 of the present system of selling manufactured produce ; but the 

 disposal of trees as they stand in the woods has many advantages 

 which are likely to prevail in the future, when the constant 

 yield of the younger woods has had time to develop an improved 

 local trade, capable of undertaking the work of bringing the timber 

 to depot (with the aid, on suitable terms and conditions, of the 

 estate appliances), and of converting it to suit the varying demands 

 of the market. It may here be repeated that during the past 

 five years, the average annual nett revenue on converted timber, 

 without deduction of maintenance charges at lfd., has been about 

 7d. per statute cubic foot (see p. 41). 



ANNUAL FINAL FELLINGS IN THE OLDER WOODS. 



It has already been stated that under the present scheme the 

 felling of the older woods will be spread over a period of twenty- 

 five years. Under this arrangement the average annual felling-area 

 will be about 37 acres; and it will yield about 4220 trees (mostly 

 conifers, but with a few hardwoods), measuring about 52,200 

 (quarter-girth) cubic feet. In this calculation no addition has been 

 made for the growth of the woods during the progress of the 

 fellings ; in some cases the crops will not improve by standing, and 



