2 TRANSACTIONS OF ROYAL SCOITISH ARBORICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



momentous question, in regard to which opinions differ greatly. 

 Recent tendencies seem to favour wider planting distances, as 

 witness the article by Sir Hugh Shaw Stewart in vol. xxxiv., 

 part 2, page 141, of the Transactions. 



"We have been hearing a great deal lately about ' increased 

 production,' and the growing of two blades of grass where 

 only one grew before. It probably would not be possible to 

 accomplish the latter aim with trees, but I am sure we all 

 deplore the large number of uneconomic areas that exist in 

 this country. To put it in a tangible form, in the production 

 of timber it is up to us either to bring about ' a more economical 

 production of the same quantity on a given area, or an increased 

 production on the same area.' Whatever we may differ on, I 

 feel sure we are all agreed that ' increased production ' is the 

 desideratum. How is it to be brought about? Will wider 

 planting do it? I confess I have my doubts. 



" So few reliable British data, outside the Bulletin recently 

 issued by the Forestry Commission, are available, that I might 

 be allowed to quote from Schlich's Manual of Forestry. In 1906 

 — fifteen years ago — he wrote in the preface to the third edition : 

 * Attempts have been made to teach British as opposed to 

 continental forestry. Before this can successfully be done, we 

 must set to work and collect statistics derived from home 

 experience. When we have accomplished this, we can proceed 

 and write economic British forestry. Until then it would be 

 unwise to reject the experience gained elsewhere, even if it is 

 derived from foreign sources.' In the text of the work many 

 pungent remarks bear on the subject on hand, but one quotation 

 must suffice, hiter alia, in the course of a paragraph dealing 

 with the superior quality of some British-grown hardwoods, he 

 says : ' As regards Scots pine and spruce, frequently an inferior 

 quality has been produced, because the trees were given too 

 much growing space and in consequence laid on too broad 

 annual rings.' I am afraid we must admit that there is a good 

 deal of truth in what Schlich says on the subject, even if we are 

 not prepared to accept his planting distances. 



*' It is desirable to have an object in view at all times, but 

 decidedly so in forestry matters, and as far as humanly possible, 

 the length of the rotation should be fixed before the planting 

 distance is decided on. So many factors have to be taken 

 into account before a final decision can be made, that it has 



