xiv INTRODUCTION 



of a coppice wood that had been very remunera- 

 tive, it may be impossible either to find a pur- 

 chaser for the crop or to alter the method 

 of management without incurring excessive 

 cost. 



The long period between the planting of young 

 trees and the harvest of the mature timber 

 has serious effects. By reducing the chance 

 that the planter will reap a personal benefit 

 from his expense and labour, it causes 

 a reluctance to plant. The long period of 

 growth also prevents the same man who plants 

 the crop from personal observation of it 

 from the start to the finish. Many years may 

 pass before the consequences of a mistaken 

 method become evident. Mistakes can rarely 

 be remedied. Experiments are very difficult to 

 contrive. 



A farmer knows from books and teaching the 

 usual practice of growing a crop, but for the 

 details of cultivation he mainly relies on his own 

 observation or the consensus of the views held 

 by the most intelligent farmers in his neighbour- 

 hood. As the result of successive trials for 

 innumerable years it becomes known what fields 

 are suited for any crop, what variety of seed 

 and what quantity should be sown, and all the 



