1-4-4 ON THE PRESENT STATE AND FUTURE PROSPECTS 



I have now noticed the prominent features of arboriculture in. 

 Yorkshire, and it will he seen that much requires to he done even 

 to place it on the footing it has attained in Scotland. I shall now 

 offer a few remarks on the future prospects of arboriculture in 

 Yorkshire, which must necessarily be to a large extent speculative. 

 I may, however, observe that there is plenty of room for extending 

 the acreage and improving the management of woodland property. 

 There are large tracts of land, especially in the hilly districts, yield- 

 ing a very small rental to the proprietor, on part of which, were 

 plantations judiciously formed, not only would they yield a 

 "better return for the ground occupied, but by affording shelter to 

 adjacent land would much increase its fertility and productiveness. 

 There are instances in the county of plantations growing at a high 

 altitude, the trees having attained moderate dimensions, the small 

 extent planted alone preventing them from affording much shelter, 

 or giving any appreciable return for the ground occupied. The fact 

 that such plantations do exist is a proof that on a larger scale they 

 would succeed in a greater degree, as it is well known that the 

 greater the extent of a plantation the better trees will succeed in it. 

 Narrow belts and small patches planted on exposed situations are 

 comparatively worthless for shelter. 



On some of the inferior low-lying lands, which are liable to fre- 

 quent flooding, and which produce little but rushes or other inferior 

 herbage, plantations of birch, alder, and willow would prove much 

 more remunerative, especially when such a class of wood realises, as 

 at present, above a shilling per foot for trees of thirty years' growth. 



In some circles of agriculturists there is a tendency to talk of land 

 occupied by plantations as so much land lying waste. This, no 

 doubt, is from want of an unbiassed consideration of facts. The great 

 benefit plantations confer on the agriculturist by the amelioration of 

 climate is lost sight of. Before planting a large proportion of his 

 land, a proprietor will always consider the return he is to get for 

 money expended and land occupied Arguments in favour of 

 reclaiming comparatively waste land by planting have been pressed 

 on the attention of landed proprietors in this country for many years, 

 and although much has been done, much more remains to be 

 done. 



The length of time that must necessarily elapse before any return 

 is received for the money laid out in planting forms the chief 

 objection to its being more generally practised. This objection, 

 however, had more force thirty years ago, so far as this county 



