170 TRANSACTION'S OF ROYAL SCOTTISH ARBORICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



thirty years, upon the estate of Colonel Harris in Perthshire. It 

 would lead me too far were I to deal with, or even make mention 

 of, all the exotics that in these parts grow with vigour and in an 

 arrangement that has added beauty to their naturally fine efiect. 

 To see them thus, compensates for many grumbling critics, and 

 lends fresh courage in the pursuit of their cultivation. 



In the north, conifers are most in evidence ; but in the south of 

 England, under milder weather conditions, species are represented 

 that are quite out of the question for Germany. There, Welling- 

 toniagigantea, Sequoia sempervirens, Cedrus Deodara, and numerous 

 species of broad-leaved trees that have their home in warmer 

 climes, are found growing freely. I must mention particularly 

 the property of the Earl of Ducie at Tourtworth Court, near 

 Bristol; the collection of broad-leaved trees there brought together 

 may indeed serve as a standard to strive after. As regards the 

 appearance of the rarer species, these grounds contrast favourably 

 even with the renowned Kew^ Gardens. 



The condition of British parks is one picture, that of British 

 woodlands quite another. The afforested area is small — in Great 

 Britain 2,726,116 acres, and in Ireland 309,741 acres; so that the 

 United Kingdom and Ireland, according to statistics taken in 

 1895, have 3,035,857 acres under trees. Practically the whole 

 of this area is in private hands, for the State forests of England 

 amount to only 66,758 acres. Large, closely-grown forests are 

 entirely wanting even upon those estates which have a considerable 

 acreage under wood. Plantations interspersed in heathland and 

 meadow are certainly seen, but they are generally in small plots 

 of only a few acres extent. Exact statistics as to the extent of the 

 country's woodlands are difficult to collect, because it is frequently 

 hard to tell whether certain areas partake more of the nature of 

 heath, field, or forest. 



The southern and central parts of England present, as regards 

 the distribution of their woods, an aspect somewhat similar to 

 Holstein. There is the same division of the fields and pastures 

 by means of hedges and narrow belts of trees. The farther north 

 one goes, the less does one see of agriculture, or at least this 

 becomes more confined to the fertile valleys and coast districts ; 

 whereas the higher parts are bare pastures, with an occasional 

 sparse growth of trees. From the forester's point of view, the 

 most unfavourable impression of the country is obtained in that 

 otherwise charming district of the Highlands between Perth and 

 the Caledonian Canal. This broad strip of land is uniformly 



