ON THE CLEARING OF LAND FOR PLANTING. 137 



broom and whins, about 40s. The thinner the crop, the less the 

 cost of clearing, provided the shrubs are of the same size. The 

 same work done by steam power would cost 70s. to 75s. per acre 

 imperial. 



If the land to be cleared is near a town or village, the broom and 

 whins may sell readily at from 6d. to Is. per cart-load. In some 

 cases I have had considerable profit from clearing such land, by 

 selling the materials, especially the roots. In one exceptional 

 case, the profit received for whins and broom clearings was over 

 30 per cent., after paying costs. 



When land covered with rough herbage is to be planted, burn- 

 ing is often resorted to, but by this method the evils are increased, 

 as, after being burnt down, whins, thorns, etc., grow with two-fold 

 vigour, and the heat which the earth receives during the process, 

 causes the seeds lying dormant in the soil to vegetate ; and both crops 

 coming up, any young trees within their reach are choked. In- 

 instead of burning then, the crops should be thoroughly rooted out 

 before planting. The young trees will, in any modei'ate soil and 

 climate, soon overtop the young herbage, which will eventually 

 die out. To this end the plants should be set closer than usual. 

 Scots fir and larch are the best trees to plant in such localities. 

 If the hei'bage threatens to overtop the plants, it should be cut out 

 at the roots with an implement resembling a ship-carpenter's adze. 

 The cost per aci'e would be from 20s. to 23s. These figures 

 represent the cost of clearing land of a close cover ; for lighter 

 scrub it would be proportionally less. 



To clear land of a heavy crop of heather, burning is the best 

 and cheapest method. This should be done one or two years 

 before planting. If the situation be exposed, the heath should 

 be burned in strips, only a few yards wide, all over the extent of 

 land intended for planting. This is easily done by a man on each 

 side of the fire, lashing it within the required space with brooms, 

 spruce branches, or any soft supple material. Strips, one or two 

 yards wide, should be left at intervals to shelter the young plants 

 from the prevailing winds of the district. The burning can there- 

 fore only be done when the wind blows moderately, and from such 

 a quarter as to burn the lines in the direction wanted. The 

 breadth of these strips should be from 15 to 100 feet wide, 

 according to the severity of the exposure. The cost per acre 

 would be from Is. 9d. to 2s. 3d. The broader the strips burned 

 at one time the cheaper the work. I have burned heather in 



