I 84 TRANSACTIONS OF ROYAL SCOTl'ISH ARBORICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



carelessness and lack of skill in harvesting the seed, or to some 

 inherent defect in the Scottish climate, the commercial Scottish 

 seed at present sold is, on the whole, inferior to European larch 

 seed. As has been already mentioned, all those whose opinion 

 I have asked seem to agree that foreign seed is superior in 

 germinative power and in resistance to nursery diseases, to that 

 collected in Scotland, except as regards frost injury, which can be 

 guarded against. 



Is the after behaviour of Tyrolese larch, when planted out, in 

 any way better than that of Scottish seed ? 



The following are the opinions received : — 



" I think when older the plant from Tyrolese seed is less liable 

 to disease." " The plants from home seed . . . are more liable 

 to be affected by Aphis and blister than either of the others 

 (Tyrolese and Japanese) when from 4 to 1 2 feet high. . . . The 

 Tyrolese does better than the home on all these places " 

 (west, north, and east of Sutherland). "The worst plants I have 

 ever seen with blister were natural seedlings which had grown in 

 a railway cutting near Dunkeld." "At Novar, in Ross-shire, 

 where I had charge of the woods for sixteen years, we planted 

 very considerable areas of pure larch, and the parts which were 

 planted with Tyrolese larch were, and are now, less affected with 

 bHster than the home larches are." 



"There are not many larch plantations reared from Tyrolese 

 seed throughout the country, but those that are about the ages 

 from twelve to fifteen years decidedly show that they are much more 

 clear of disease, and are altogether of a much healthier appearance." 

 " We have a plantation of Tyrolese larch at Novar twenty-five 

 years old, and it is very free from disease, whereas the native larch 

 plantations of the same size are very much diseased." 



The Japanese larch is, I think, admittedly superior in its 

 resistance to Peziza, to any race of Larix europaa. The most 

 instructive example known to me is a plantation at Murray thwaite, 

 in Dumfriesshire, which is well known in forestry. The opposite 

 sides of a small glen were planted with common and with Japanese 

 larch. Although a case of disease was recorded on one Japanese 

 larch, it was unable to affect the tree seriously. The whole 

 Japanese side of the glen is in a splendid state of vigorous growth, 

 whereas the larches on the Scottish side are for the most part dead 

 or dying, and very few of them will ever come to maturity. 



Unfortunately there is a belief in this country that the Japanese 



