ARBORICULTURE IN HAMPSHIRE. 51 



vated principally in parks and pleasure grounds, but it is increas- 

 ing in favour, and is now occasionally introduced in mixed hard- 

 wood plantations. It stands pre-eminent for profitable planting 

 on soils superincumbent on chalk, and is worthy of more attention 

 than it has hitherto received. 



Future Prospects. 

 The intelligent forester will have gathered from the preceding 

 remarks that the future prospects of the woods and plantations of 

 Hampshire are, on the whole, unsatisfactory, particularly in districts 

 where underwood is in good demand at remunerative prices. The 

 area of underwood and coppice is steadily increasing, while that of 

 timber plantations is gradually diminishing. Larch, Scotch and 

 spruce fir enclosures, as they become matured, are generally suc- 

 ceeded by underwood, for which there is a demand in the neigh- 

 bourhood. Occasionally a few mature trees are left to retain the 

 wooded appearance of the district, but these are a poor substitute 

 for a healthy crop of timber. Scotch and spruce firs are seldom 

 planted in new enclosures, even where the soil is incapable of 

 growing any other crop. Larch is more frequently planted, but the 

 new plantations on private properties are not nearly equal to the 

 areas annually cleared or converted into other crops. This defici- 

 ency, however, is more than compensated by the large enclosures 

 periodically planted in the Government forests. Several of these are 

 in Hampshire, the principal one being the New Forest, where there 

 are large tracts of unproductive land, over which freeholders and 

 proprietors of adjoining estates have certain rights. Freeholders' 

 rights, however, do not preclude the Crown from planting any 

 portion of these wastes so soon as the trees on an equal portion of 

 the enclosed forest are out of danger from cattle, and thrown open 

 in exchange. Thus large tracts are enclosed and planted from 

 time to time. These are probably more than equivalent to the 

 decrease of larch plantations on private properties. On soils suit- 

 able for larch, underwood is generally cultivated, and on soils 

 only adapted for Scotch fir, larch is occasionally planted. This, I 

 believe, is caused by the greater demand for larch poles than 

 Scotch firs of the same age. The difference in value tempts 

 people to plant larch in poor gravelly soils, and the result is a 

 diseased and unprofitable crop. The prospects of arboriculture in 

 Hants would be improved if larch was more planted in soils at 

 present occupied with coppice; if Scotch fir was not so com- 



