REPORT OF THE ANNUAL EXCURSION. 65 



Corsican pine at 8 ft, filled up at 4 ft. with 2-yr. i-yr. Scots 

 pine. Mr Harris explained that weevils had been very numerous 

 from the old pine stools, and he had found it worth while to get 

 local school children to collect them at so much a hundred, with 

 a prize to the collector of the greatest number. 



A by-product of the woodlands was also observed near here 

 in the working by hand of a quarry of fine yellow and red 

 sandstone cut on the spot into convenient sizes for building 

 purposes. The next object of interest was the nursery of 2 acres 

 established here for convenience in planting up this self-contained 

 area of 280 acres, and also to acclimatise the young plants to 

 their future situation. The elevation is 750 ft. with a rather 

 exposed south-west aspect and the soil light and sandy — no 

 manure had been used (resulting in an almost total absence 

 of weeds), greater attention being paid to working the soil into 

 good physical condition. Cockchafer grubs had given much 

 trouble, but these were got rid of by working gas lime into the 

 soil and then taking a crop of potatoes. Larch transplants 

 attacked by aphis were being sprayed with a nicotine mixture 

 which is found very successful, especially if followed by heavy 

 rain. This nursery was awarded a Silver Medal by the Royal 

 Agricultural Society in 1920. 



Above the nursery a fine plantation of 100 acres of larch was 

 next visited, part being of pure European and part of alternate 

 Japanese and European — it was interesting to notice that there 

 was still some undergrowth of grass and bracken under the pure 

 European, but none under the mixture. The first 60 acres were 

 planted in 1908-9 at a cost of ^4, i6s. per acre, and the 

 remaining 40 acres in 1910-11 at ^^, 7s. Two-year one-year 

 plants were used, pitted in at 5 ft. interval, and bracken had to 

 be beaten down the first year at a cost of 6s. 7d. per acre. 

 The wood was in fine condition and just about to have its first 

 thinning, in connection with which Mr Harris asked for opinions 

 as to whether he should thin out the best trees and encourage 

 the medium trees, or thin with the view of encouraging the best. 

 Most seemed to agree that as the best trees were already saleable 

 as pit-props, they should be mostly cut out with the idea of 

 encouraging as full a crop as possible of second-class trees for 

 future pit-wood. The European larch seemed to be growing quite 

 as rapidly as the Japanese and with straighter leaders, owing to 

 the latter having been attacked by A^-gyresthia atmoriella. 



