138'1- AUISOIII.'I'IJM AND FHUTICETUM. I'AUT III. 



this, it is proved by the practice in Belgium, is only an imaginar}- evil, pro- 

 vided tlie snpcrHiions shoots are removed from tiie upper extremity of the 

 decapitated tree the second year, and the head formed with common care 

 by future prunings, (See the very instructive article by Poiteau, already re- 

 ferred to, in tiie Ainialcs, and also the account of the Belgian {)ractice, in 

 the Gardoicr's JMagfizine, vol. x. p. H.) In liritain, young elm trees, having been 

 two or three times transplanted in the nurseries, are placed in their final 

 situations without heading down ; and in our moist climate they grow vi- 

 gorously the first year, and re(|nire very little pruning. On the Continent, 

 owing to the greater warmth of the summers, and the conse(]uent increased 

 evaporation from the leaves, plants are liable to be killed when trans- 

 planted with all their branches on; and, hence, the mode of denuding the 

 plants just described is that generally practised. In France and Belgium, the 

 narrow-leaved elm is the most connnon tree planted by road sides, and along 

 the boulevards and streets of towns and cities ; and, in such cases, a large pit 

 is previously dug, 4- ft. or 5 ft. in diameter, and from 2 ft. to 3 ft. in depth ; and a 

 considerable portion of rich fine mould is placed in immediate contact with 

 the roots of the trees, and the pit filled up with the best part of the soil which 

 had been previously dug out of it. During the first summer, water is regularly 

 supplied; and the trees, or rather stumps, grow freely; very little attention is 

 required afterwards, except to encourage the leading shoot, and to shorten 

 in the lateral branches, so as to encourage the plant to assume a tree-like 

 form. In the neighbourhood of Paris, and in the south of France, U. cam- 

 pestris, and several of its varieties, occasionally bear seeds ; and these ai-e 

 sometimes sown by the nurserymen, in onler to [)rocure new sorts ; and by 

 the managers of the national forests, in order to obtain numerous plants at a 

 cheap rate. The common English elm very rarely produces seeds in England ; 

 nevertheless it has done so in a few places, and one of these is Lea Park, 

 near Littlebourne, about four miles from Canterbury. Mr. Masters of Can- 

 terbury has only known seeds twice ripened in this park; and one of the 

 times they did not gcrniinate. From those which did he obtained U. c. 

 viminalis, and nearly a score other very distinct varieties, which, however, 

 from the number of varieties already existing, and the little demand for them, 

 he did not consider worth keeping separate, and giving names to. U. c. 

 strlcta, and some other varieties of the common elm, as well as the species, 

 flower very profusely every year, but scarcely ever ripen seeds. 



It is observed by Bosc, that the more remarkable varieties, such as the 

 twisted elm, the broad-leaved elm, the lime-tree-leaved elm, &c., come 

 tolerably true from seed, speaking of the mass of young plants ; but that among 

 these are constantly produced numerous subvaneties. The seeds fall from 

 the trees as soon as they are ripe ; and, being swept up, are sown immediately 

 in beds of light rich soil; the seeds being placed about 1 in. apart every way, 

 and covered to the depth of ai)out an eighth of an inch. The [ilants come 

 lip the same season, and are fit for transplanting into nursery lines in the au- 

 tumn. Of all the Euroj)ean timber trees, not belonging to the coniferous family, 

 except the Lombardy poplars, the narrow-leaved elm requires the least care or 

 pruning after it is planted ; and, at the same time, no tree will bear better 

 than it does the knife or the shears. All the branches may be cut from the 

 stem, except a small tuft at the top ; and still the tree will grow vigorously, 

 affording, where that mode of feedmg cattle is considered profitable, an ample 

 croj) of branches every three or four years. When headed down to the height 

 of loft, or 12ft., it is very prolific of branches, as a pollard, and will live 

 and be productive, in this state, for a great number of years. When 

 grown exclusively for the timber of its trunk, however, it requires to be 

 allowed a considerable amplitude of head; perhaps not less than one third of 

 its whole height. The timber, in this case, is found to be far n)ore compact 

 and durable, though not so curiously veined and variously coloured, as it is 

 when the tree is allowed to produce branches from the ground upwards. The 

 timber of the elm, not being remarkable for its durability, is, in old trees, very 



