34 TRANSACTIONS OF ROYAL SCOTTISH ARBORICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



4. The Forests of Australia.^ 



By D. E. HuTCHiNS, F.R.G.S. 



I am a retired member of the Indian Forest Service, but have 

 spent most of my life in South Africa, where forestry is some 

 quarter of a century ahead of Australia. When I went to South 

 Africa in 1883 an eminent French forester, Comte de Vasselot, 

 was then engaged in organising forestry on the scientific lines 

 adopted in Europe. That was the foundation of forestry as it 

 exists to-day in South Africa, where some ;;^2,5oo,ooo sterling 

 has been spent on forestry, with the main object of producing in 

 the country the timber which is now being imported at a yearly 

 cost of some ^1,250,000. South Africa is now spending 

 ;^i45,ooo yearly on forestry ; the forest revenue is at present 

 ;^5o,ooo. The indigenous forests of South Africa are managed 

 on the same lines as are forests in Europe, America and Japan, 

 or wherever, indeed, the forests are scientifically managed ; but 

 the indigenous forests are small in area, and have had to be 

 supplemented by large areas of forest planting, some 80,000 

 acres up to date. Pines are largely raised by the inexpensive 

 process of ploughing the ground and sowing pine seed broadcast 

 like a field of wheat; cluster and canary pine are the two chief 

 pines planted. As much as 32 tons of pine seed have been used 

 in this way in one year — the average during the last three years 

 being 25 tons. 



I went to Australia with the British Association in 19 14, and 

 spent six months on a forest tour in the various Australian 

 States — the most interesting six months of my life. For my 

 life's work has been trees and forestry, and I am now seeing, 

 growing in their own home, those Australian trees, especially 

 the eucalypts, which we have planted so largely in South Africa. 

 Australia and South Africa have, of course, practically identical 

 climates, and most of the eucalypts grow rather better in South 

 Africa than in Australia. This may be due to the fact that in 

 South Africa they are in their own climate, and are at present 

 free from the natural pests from which everything in nature 

 suffers more or less. The Australian eucalypts in South Africa 

 have all been raised from seed, and the importation of any green 



^ From an article contributed to the Melbourne Argus by the author. 



