NATIONAL-ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE. 755 



best osier-willows are Salix rindnalis, purpurea, amygdaUna, 

 rubrn (riminaUs X piirptirea), alba var. ritclliiia, pruinosa, etc. 

 Planted in the ground as shoots, 8 to 10 inches long [or full- 

 length shoots of 6 to 8 feet, as in England. Tr.], they grow 

 in one or two years coppice-shoots to lengths of 6 to 10 feet. 

 Full details regarding the culture of osiers are given by Krahe, 

 Kern,* Goschke, Piccioli, and others. 



von Kern has described the use made of twelve species of 

 willows : the wood, for basket-work, fascines, fences, vine- 

 props, hurdles, charcoal and fuel ; the bark, for tanning, pro- 

 duction of salicin, dyes, tying, carpets, litter and woven shoes ; 

 the wool from their seeds for wads and stuffing ; their leaves 

 and twigs for sheep and goat fodder ; their flowers for agri- 

 culture and for decorative purposes ; their roots for fixing soil, 

 protecting banks, etc. 



SECTION II. NATIONAL-ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE OF FIELD-CROPS 



COMBINED WITH FORESTRY. 



The national-economic advantages of combining field-crops 

 and forestry consist in the increased production of food, the 

 fact that this can be secured without any manure, and last 

 but not least, because the increased supply of straw really 

 increases the amount of manure available for agriculture. 

 These advantages, however, are diminished considerably by 

 the difficulties of working the soil (weeds, shrubs, stools, roots, 

 sloping ground, distance from villages) ; this form of cultiva- 

 tion is commonest in warm countries, on loose soil, in land 

 either slightly undulating or flat, in densely populated districts, 

 with insufficient agricultural land. 



The advantages to forests from field-crops are : the conse- 

 quent increase in the forest revenue, and the reduced cost of 

 reproduction, for the ground is thus cultivated ; the growth 

 also of the forest plants is stimulated when the crop is young, 

 and the young crop is sheltered. 



The increased forest revenue by field-crops is usually only 



* von Kern "Die Weiden, ihre Bedeutung, Erziehung, " Benutzung. Tula, 

 IS'.H; (Russian). See also Mouillefert, " Traite de Sylviculture," Felix Alcan, 

 Paris. 11)01, where there is an excellent account of osier-beds. 



3c2 



