ESSAY ON FUEL PLANTATIONS. 89 



Where the soil is but scantily covered with trees, it will 

 be advisable to fell out and sell such, in order that there 

 in;iy be no interference by mature trees with young ones 

 planted out. 



It is here necessary to caution the amateur fuel-planter 

 against attempting to stock his jungle by planting out 

 seedlings under grown-up trees. This will assuredly fail, 

 as I have already explained. 



The block should be thoroughly fenced round, and the 

 cheapest and best permanent fence I know of, is one to be 

 formed in the following manner : 



A deep ditch, with the bottom wedge-shaped, 4 feet deep 

 and 4 feet wide, is to be excavated, the earth being thrown 

 up on the inner side. A fence of the same description as 

 that provided for a casuarina plantation, previously de- 

 scribed by me, should now be erected on the summit of the 

 thrown-up earth ; and when the croton has struck, germi- 

 nated seeds of palmyra (Boi'assus flabelliformis) should be 

 sown at intervals of 4 feet on the inner side of the hedge. 

 These, when grown up, make a splendid fence, and any 

 small gaps can easily be repaired with bamboo thorns. The 

 date palm (Phoenix) is also very good, as its armed leaves 

 present a formidable obstacle to the intrusion of stray cattle. 

 It will not, however, grow well everywhere. A living 

 bamboo fence is also good, but not equal to those previously 

 mentioned. 



The Mexican Agave, again, makes a fine fence ; but wild 

 pigs are fond of the immature leaves, and destroy the whole 

 plant to get at them. This was my experience in the 

 Walliar Reserve. 



A nursery must be formed near water, and beds made and 

 plauted-np with seeds of the best fuel-trees adapted to the 

 soil of the Reserve. Vermin (rats) can be kept from the 

 young plants by strewing pods of cowhage (Mucuna pruri- 

 ens) round the stems of the seedlings. All perfectly open 

 or bare spaces should be pitted 6' X 6', some being planted 

 entirely with 0110 single description of tree, whilst others 



12 



