CHAP, ii S Y L V A ii 



(once for all) to warn our disorderly husband-men 

 from coveting to let their lops grow to an extraor- 

 dinary size, before they take them off, as conceiving 

 it furnishes them with the more wood for the fire ; 

 not considering how such gashly wounds mortally 

 affect the whole body of the tree, or at least does so 

 decay their vigour, that they hereby lose more in 

 one year, than the lop amounts to, should they pare 

 them off sooner, and when the scars might be cover'd: 

 In the mean while, that young oaks prosper much in 

 growth, by timely pruning, the industrious Mr. Cooke 

 observes ; whereas some other trees, as the horn-beam, 

 Gfc. though they will bear considerable lops, when 

 there's only the shell of the tree standing, yet it is 

 much to its detriment ; especially to the ash, which 

 if once it comes to take wet by this means, rarely 

 produces more lop to any purpose ; above all, if it 

 decay in the middle, when 'tis fitter for the chimney, 

 than to stand and cumber the ground : The same may 

 be pronounc'd of most trees, which would not per- 

 haps become dotards in many ages, but for this 

 covetous barbarity, and unskilful handling. 



3. By this animadversion alone it were easy for an 

 ingenious man to understand how trees are to be 

 govern'd ; which is in a word, by sparing great lops, 

 cutting clean, smooth, and close, making the stroke 

 upward, and with a sharp bill, so as the weight of 

 an untractable bough do not splice, and carry the 

 bark with it, which is both dangerous and unsightly ; 

 the oak will suffer it self to be made a pollard, that 

 is, to have its head quite cut off, and it may be good 

 for mast, if not too much prun'd, but not for timber : 

 But the elm so treated, will perish to the foot, and 

 certainly become hollow at last, if it 'scape with life. 



