232 TRANSACTIONS OF ROYAL SCOTTISH ARBORICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
at a marked line, of sundry trees, and find that the average 
annual increment in girth at 3 feet from the ground of— 
Blackwoods is about 3 inches. 
Poplars a 24, 
Robinias - 1b ee. 
Silver Wattles pe bt Cs, 
Oaks and Paraisos ___,, oe ee 
Kucalyptus . 34s, 
The evergreens seem to have no distinctly marked period of rest ; 
the deciduous rest from middle of April to middle of September 
as a rule, some beginning and some ending their rest a little 
earlier or a little later. Between middle of April and middle of 
May there is a slight shrinkage of measurement in paraisos, 
robinias, and especially poplars. 
For the benefit of my neighbours in Uruguay, I may state that 
the expense of planting trees as I have described is but small, and 
greatly reduced when two or even three crops of maize can be 
taken off the first ploughing and fencing expenses. Though I only 
began planting for business purposes in 1880, I have made a 
considerable number of small sales of wood during the past two 
years, and see no reason to doubt that in two or three more 
years, the balance now to debtor of plantation account will have 
been cleared off, leaving me with probably 150,000 trees of 
various ages and values, of which I might fell one-tenth annually, 
and still leave a good proportion to grow up to large wood, for 
planks, beams, ete. 
Apart from the pecuniary returns from these woods, the shelter 
afforded to stock in our occasional bitter cold winds and wet 
storms from §8.W., §., and S.E., must tend toward maintaining 
the condition of the stock, and consequently towards the returns 
from the estate. 
It is perhaps too much to suppose that such a trifling area of 
plantation, in an almost woodless country, can affect the rainfall, 
but I am bold to dream that a passing rain-cloud is more likely 
to discharge some of its contents over San Jorge than over neigh- 
bouring lands entirely bare of trees, excepting in some cases a 
few round a house, rarely so much as an acre. The estates 
within 50 miles of San Jorge that have as much as 20 acres 
of planted trees could probably be counted on the fingers 
of one hand; I am not sure that any have as much as 20 
