82 TRANSACTIONS OF ROYAL SCOTTISH ARBORICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



Ardverikie, in places exposed to the west wind, you will see the 

 Douglas fir scourged by the wind till nothing remains but a 

 miserable and almost leafless stick, while close beside it the 

 nobilis stands erect and healthy and equally furnished with 

 branches on every side. 



" For further particulars I refer to the following notes which 

 have been prepared by Mr Fraser, my factor, at my request : — 



" I. Date of first pla?itatio7i. — The first plantation was formed 

 in 1873. 



" 2. Area. — From 1873 ^o this date, 10,400 acres or thereby 

 have been planted, and in doing this 34,000,000 plants have 

 been used, giving an average of 3276 plants to the acre. 



"3. Elevation. — Loch Laggan is 817 feet above sea-level, 

 and the plantation is alongside the loch. Loch Earba is 1 142 feet 

 above sea-level, and the plantations in the neighbourhood of 

 both lochs are doing exceedingly well. Along Loch Earba side 

 Scots firs and larch are doing well up to an altitude of 1500 and 

 1700 feet. 



"4. Species. — The greater part of the Ardverikie plantations 

 consists of Scots fir, larch, and spruce mixed. There are two 

 plantations of pure larch, each of about 500 acres. One is at 

 Loch Ericht side, at an altitude of 11 60 to 2400 feet, and the 

 other on Meall-an-Domhnaich, in Glenspey, at an altitude of 

 TOGO to 1700 feet. Both plantations have a southern exposure. 

 When the plantations \vere from 6 to 8 years old, a number of 

 the plants became diseased and died out. A fair proportion, 

 however, recovered, and are now doing exceedingly well, 

 leaving a crop of about 1000 trees to an acre. 



'• On the lower ground and along the roads a number of 

 ornamental trees have been planted, and they are doing exceed- 

 ingly well. These consist chiefly of nobilis, Douglas fir, grandis, 

 and silver fir trees. 



" 5. Method of planting. — The notch system, and at an average 

 distance of 3^ feet to 4 feet apart, using chiefly 2-year i-year 

 for the Scots fir, larch from 12 to 16 inches, and spruce from 

 9 to I 2 inches. 



"6. Source of plants. — A number of plants have been reared 

 from seed in the estate nursery, but the greater portion was 

 raised by buying i-year i-year and 2-year seedlings, and laying 

 them in the nursery for a year before planting out. A quantity 

 of plants were also bought and planted direct on the ground. 



