74 TRANSACTIONS OF ROYAL SCOTTISH ARBORICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



although the maximum depth may exceed 3 feet. It is dark 

 brown in colour, and more fibrous and compact than the first 

 quality. On it grow a mixture of heather, bog myrtle, some 

 sedges, and some deer grass {Scirpus ccespitosus), the heather 

 being the dominant plant. This quality is also best adapted 

 for spruce. 



The third quality peat of the "flow moss" resembles the 

 second-class quality in the appearance of the surface vegetation. 

 It attains a depth of 8 feet, is brown in colour, and is of a much 

 coarser texture than the first- and second-class qualities. Large 

 numbers of Scots pine stumps, stems and branches are found 

 embedded in it. It is covered with heather, deer grass, cotton 

 grass {Eriophoriim vaginatuni), and species of Carex. This quality 

 of peat is found to be unsuitable for growing spruce, and only Scots 

 pine and mountain pine are successful in establishing themselves. 



The fourth quality peat of the " flow moss " is invariably 

 found at much higher altitudes. It covers a very large area 

 of Corrour estate, and is quite unsuitable for planting. It is 

 found to attain an average depth of 22 inches in the planted 

 area, but, in the vicinity, it is often found to be over 1 1 feet deep. 

 It is invariably of a dark brown colour, is very tough, fibrous 

 and of a leathery consistency. The dominant plants which grow 

 on it are the cotton grasses, from the decaying remains of which 

 this kind of moss is largely produced, and there is also a large 

 proportion of deer grass and some Carices. There is also a 

 small proportion of heather, including the pink bell heather 

 {Erica tetralix). Owing to its leathery consistency this peat is 

 very difficult to cut, and, unlike the other classes of " flow moss," 

 when upturned and exposed to the elements it does not readily 

 decompose, not even after a period of four years. The roots of 

 the spruce seem unable to penetrate this peat, and it is only with 

 difficulty that even the Scots pine can grow on it. 



The "Shallow Peat" or "Hill Moss." 



The " shallow peat," which is termed " hill moss," differs in many 

 respects from the " flow moss." It is always met with on knolls 

 and steep slopes, or where the declivity of the ground, or the 

 permeable nature of the subsoil, prevents the stagnation of 

 moisture which is so necessary for the formation of the former. 

 It is merely an incrustation of a few inches, and is seldom found to 

 exceed i foot in depth. Draining in any shape or form is there- 



