NOTES ON THE CORSICAN PINE AT LOCHNAW. 83 



10. Notes on the Corsican Pine at Lochnaw. 



By Sir Andrew N. Agnew, Bart., President of the Society. 



There is no tree which has come into general use in Wigtown- 

 shire during the last half century which has proved so service- 

 able as the Corsican pine {F. Laricid). At least that has been 

 our experience on the Lochnaw estate, where it has been planted 

 regularly for forty years. It is an extremely hardy tree, growing 

 and thriving in the poorest soil and in the most exposed situations. 

 The Corsican pine has the reputation of being difficult to 

 establish, but we have never had any trouble with it. The losses 

 among young plants have been no greater in this species than in 

 any other. It is, indeed, rather slow in taking hold of the 

 ground, and is consequently rather apt to get a shake in stormy 

 weather during its first year or two. But once this stage has 

 been got over, it is the most reliable tree we have ; making the 

 best of any circumstances, and standing erect and unshaken in 

 the teeth of the fiercest gales. 



I have known more than one case on this estate where a 

 plantation has been saved by the introduction of the Corsican 

 pine. The most striking instance is that of a low hill first 

 planted in 1854 with the usual mixture of trees customary at 

 that period. The soil was poor and the exposure a trying one, 

 and nothing could be induced to grow upon it. Year after year 

 the blanks were filled up, but with the most disappointing results. 

 At last, by a happy inspiration, the Corsican pine was introduced, 

 especially along the exposed edges. From that moment the 

 plantation began to make a surprising recovery, and is now 

 growing into a dense and flourishing wood. 



The first Corsican pine planted at Lochnaw was in the year 

 1853. It is now a well-grown tree, 62 feet in height, with a 

 gently tapering stem measuring 5 ft. 3 ins. at 5 feet above the 

 ground. It was not till 1870 that the prices quoted for young 

 plants in nurserymen's catalogues were sufficiently low to enable 

 this tree to be used extensively for forest purposes. Since that 

 date it has been constantly planted at Lochnaw, though always 

 in conjunction with other species. There are only two cases in 

 which an acre or so has been planted with Corsicans nearly pure, 

 and in both cases the result has been very satisfactory. Some 

 measurements recently made in one of these plantations may 

 prove of interest. The plantation was made in 1887 and covers 



