332 Major F. Bailey's Forest Tour 



full of resin. Tliere is, in many parts of the forest, a 

 dense undergrowth of shrubs, chiefly the arborescent- 

 heather, which, rising to a height of 12 to 14 feet, 

 becomes, in the hot season, as dry as tinder, and when fire 

 enters burns with terrific heat, killing off all the pines and 

 such of the oaks as are too old to coppice. The ground then 

 ■usually becomes covered with an extraordinarily dense 

 crop of pine seedlings, sown from cones on the burnt trees, 

 or from those on the ground which have been opened by 

 the fire without the seed being injured; and these grow up 

 more rapidly tlian the heather, forming with it an almost 

 impenetrable thicket, in which the oaks, if not freed by 

 clearing round them, become suffocated. It would be 

 impossible to raise a finer crop of pines than that which 

 follows tlie fire, but unfortunately it is the oak which is 

 wanted, and not the pine. The ready reproduction of the 

 latter species is, however, advantageous, for the associate 

 required for oak is always growing, — there is nothing to 

 be done to raise it; wliile as it does not coppice, it is 

 always easy to get rid of. But should a second fire pass 

 over the ground before the new crop of pines has seeded, 

 the effect would be very serious, for then replanting 

 must be resorted to. 



There are several methods of dealing Avith the fires. 

 The first and most effectual system is to grub up all the 

 heather and other shrubs by the roots, so as to leave 

 nothing on the ground that can burn. But this is an 

 expensive process, costing from £3 to £5 an acre; and 

 it has to be repeated, though at a reduced cost, every 

 few years. It is rarely attenipted, except by private pro- 

 prietors, and it could not possibly pay in the case of a cro]) 

 less remunerative than the cork oak. This process is mani- 

 festly open to the grave objection, that the soil, deprived 

 of its protective covering, is deteriorated by exposure to 

 the sun, and washed away by the heavy rains ; but the 

 cultivation which it receives during the process of extract- 

 ing the roots may compensate this disadvantage to some 

 extent. Tlie usual method of guarding against fires is to 

 comjjletely clear broad lines — from 50 to 130 feet wide — 

 of everything but cork oak ; the roots of slirubs and 

 coppicing trees being dug out, and all inflammable refuse 



