ON NURSE TREES IN YOUNG PLANTATIONS. 1 75 



silviculture in Great Britain within the last three decades than 

 the fact that up to about 1895^ Brown's Forester was the 

 standard authority on the subject ; a place which it still deserves 

 in every respect except that of silviculture. It would be 

 hardly possible to improve on much of the advice given by Brown 

 on the selection of ground, draining, fencing, formation of 

 nurseries, and planting. It is only on the silvicultural side 

 that his advice needs to be qualified in the light of scientific 

 research on the Continent and in this country. 



The following notes refer to nurse trees in young plantations 

 of hardwoods, chiefly beech and oak. They are based on the 

 experience of annual plantings for the last eleven years, a 

 period which covers the whole existence of the bulk of the 

 nurse trees. 



The chief points of a good nurse tree are — i. Hardiness 

 against spring frost. 2. Rapidity of growth when young. 

 3. Light foliage and upright habit. 4. Ability to stand 

 pruning. 5. Value as early thinnings. 



The trees employed in this case have been — i. European 

 larch. 2. Japanese larch. Of these, the European larch 

 has proved superior in hardiness against spring frost, in lightness 

 of foliage, and habit of growth. Both larches have grown 

 rapidly ; the European larch has made the more rapid growth 

 in height, and the Japanese has given the larger bulk of small 

 pit-wood at the age of nine to eleven years. The Japanese 

 larch has the disadvantage of throwing out strong side branches, 

 but it stands pruning well. 



The method of planting is as follows : — The planting distance 

 is 3 feet; of 4840 plants to the acre, approximately 2500 are 

 beech, 2 year-i year, 1500 oak, i year-i year, and 800 larch, 

 2 year-i year. Every third row consists of larch and beech 

 alternately; the other rows consist of beech and oak alternately, 

 so that the larch nurses stand 6 feet apart in the rows, and 

 the rows of larch and beech are 9 feet apart. 



For the first three or four years after planting, the nurse 

 trees have very little influence on the growth of the crop. 

 There is ample space for all, and if after the second year the 

 larch begin to take the lead it is only as isolated individuals. 

 From the fourth or fifth year the larch takes much more than 



^ Dr Nisbet's enlarged and modified edition of Brown's Forester was 

 published in 1894. 



