Silvicultural Practice. 17 



naturally the one under which the mixed forest was 

 utilized. Fire used in the pasture woods for the same 

 purposes as with us effectively prevented reproduc- 

 tion in these, and destroyed gradually the remnants of 

 old trees. 



Only where for park and hunting purposes some 

 care was bestowed upon the woodland, was repro- 

 duction purposely attempted, as, for instance, when 

 in a hunting park an underwood was to be established 

 for game cover. 



The treatment of the coppice and methods of 

 sowing and planting were well understood in spite 

 of the lack of natural sciences. Whatever forestry 

 practice existed was based merely on empirical obser- 

 vations and was taught in the books on agriculture 

 as a part of farm practice. 



Silviculture was mainly developed in connection 

 with the coppice, which was systematically practiced 

 for the purpose of growing vineyard stakes, especially 

 with chestnut (castanetum) , oak (quercetum), and 

 willow (salicetum), while the arbustum denoted the 

 plantings of trees for the support of grapes, and in- 

 cidentally for the foliage used as cattle feed, still in 

 vogue in modern Italy. 



This planting of vine supports was done with sap- 

 lings of elm, poplar and some other species; by pol- 

 larding and by a well devised system of pruning, these 

 were gradually prepared and maintained in proper 

 form for their purpose. 



The coppice seems to have been systematically 

 managed in Attica as well as in Italy in regular fellings; 

 the mild climate producing sprouts and root suckers 



