1 62 THE NEW FORESTRY. 



the rotation period ; but after middle age, when height-growth 

 has been attained and it is desired to accelerate trunk develop- 

 ment, or thickness of bole, the tops of the trees are allowed 

 more room in order to increase the leafage, which in turn 

 increases the trunk increment The aim throughout, how- 

 ever, is to preserve a uniform rate of growth as tending to 

 improve the quality of the timber. It is held by German 

 authorities that quickly-grown timber is best in, the case of 

 broad-leaved species, and that the reverse is the case with the 

 firs, the width of the annual rings being the test in each case. 

 According to this, it would of course be best to thin hard- 

 woods freely in order to encourage top-growth and so augment 

 the width of the annual rings, and the reverse in the case of 

 the firs, so a compromise has to be effected, in thinning each 

 species, in order to secure the best general results as regards 

 a crop. 



As regards the weight of crop produced in these German 

 forests, we are told that from eight thousand to ten thousand 

 feet was a common thing in a final cut ; and we readily 

 believed it from what we saw. Some experiments, however, 

 carried out in the Duchy of Saxe-Wiemar, and the results of 

 which were given us by the forest officers there, showed that 

 on one hectare the quantity of Scotch fir timber, one hundred 

 years of age, amounted to eleven hundred and twelve cubic 

 metres equivalent to about twenty thousand cubic feet per 

 English acre. This was sold by auction at the rate of 475 

 per English acre ; twenty-seven per cent, being disposed of 

 for firewood. These results exceed anything recorded in 

 Britain, where, however, they may be realised under the same 

 system of culture and management. German foresters assess 

 the productive capacity of soil and locality as closely as 

 possible, and the following table, taken from Schlich's 

 " Manual," vol. i., p. 156, is given to show the number of cubic 

 feet per acre that may be reasonably expected from one acre 

 of Scotch fir at the final yield, exclusive of thinnings, according 

 to the age of the wood and quality of soil and locality, as 

 indicated by the numbers No. I. representing the highest 

 quality, and No. V. the lowest. " The figures present the 

 mean of very numerous measurements " in Germany. 



