8o JKANSACTIONS OF ROYAL SCOTTISH AKBOklCUL'JUKAL SOCIETY. 



Specimens of most of our commoner hardwoods are to be 

 seen dotted here and there over the country side, so that, perhaps, 

 it would be unnecessary to put in the arboretum such trees as 

 the oak, elm, ash, beech, etc., but there are many varieties of 

 these species which might take the place of their better known 

 relatives. 



To mention a few of the oaks — there are the scarlet oak, 

 Turkey oak, evergreen and holly oak, white American, red 

 American, and the cork tree {Quercus suber). These all do well 

 in this island, although I have not seen one of the last in 

 Scotland. The acacias, the tulip tree, service tree, the willows, 

 poplars and maples should all be represented. 



The maples are numerous, but the eagle-clawed, the sugar 

 maple, and the variegated varieties, Acer negunda, are worth 

 mentioning. 



I will not make a longer list, as long lists get monotonous, 

 but reference to a standard work, such as Loudon's Trees and 

 Shrubs, or any nurseryman's catalogue, will show what an 

 endless variety of trees there is to pick from. 



^ffil^ — I have given the list of trees without reference to soil 

 or situation, but, in making the arboretum, the first thing to 

 do is to find out the class of soil or soils. When these are 

 known, then the different species can be selected to suit each 

 soil. What suits one tree may be death to another, or at 

 least the tree will never come to perfection if planted in a 

 soil unsuited to its requirements. For instance, a Scots pine 

 will grow on sandy soil, and become a fine tree in time, but 

 it would be useless to plant an oak in sand and expect it to 

 grow into a specimen tree. 



Again, willows and poplars demand a moist soil, but others 

 can grow on soil that seems to be almost devoid of moisture. 

 These trees generally have strong tap-roots which go deep into 

 the subsoil, and obtain their supply of moisture from it. In 

 the space of a few yards even, we often find two different soils. 

 We expect to find a deeper and better class of soil in the 

 hollows than on the hillsides. 



Most trees will do well in good deep soil, but only com- 

 paratively few will grow to any size on poor shallow soil. 

 Some trees will not thrive where there is an excess of lime, 

 others again will not come to perfection without it. 



Climatic conditiotis play a great part in the selection of 



