Avoidable waste in planting 133 



begins to do this, as many of the finest natural woods 

 have done for ages. Woods planted a dozen years will 

 be found to have a good deposit of leaf-soil this is in 

 cases where the tree suits the ground and where the 

 young trees are thick enough. In the open, common 

 loose way of planting we may look in vain for any such 

 deposit, as the Grass absorbs it all. The effect of a heavy 

 fall of leaf-soil from the lower branches of Pine and 

 other trees is that, in hot and dry seasons, when farmers 

 and gardeners are at their wits' end to get water, the 

 wood is cool and safe. 



Trees as soil-makers. To the pleasure-ground planter 

 these ideas will seem folly ; he considers all such costly 

 work as drainage and trenching essential to the success 

 of his shrubbery. From his point of view, which is to 

 get a rapid growth in the rampant growers that he 

 usually plants, this may be desirable ; but where is the 

 shrubbery that can show as good a growth as many 

 a woodland or forest ? It does not exist. Trees will 

 often grow well in abandoned scoriae, mine-rubbish, 

 and other ugly earth surfaces. But the planter of 

 such surfaces must look a little to kinds and their habits 

 as well as to soil. In the planting of lands of no 

 ( quality ' or poor situation the kind of tree is important, 

 as each has its preferences, and though many hardy 

 trees will grow in almost any situation, it by no means 

 follows that we get good timber from them. Oak, Ash, 

 and nearly every hard-wood tree will grow almost any- 

 where, but not always be worth cutting. Oak is much 

 affected by the quality of the land, and, even where it 

 grows rapidly and large, is often not as good timber as 

 that of smaller trees. Spruce on a wet western hill- 

 side will make growth such as we never see in southern 



