112 THE DEVELOPMENT OF BRITISH FORESTRY 



tions, give as good an account of themselves in Britain as 

 anywhere in Europe. Beech and oak, on the other hand, 

 require to be specially favoured as regards soil and situa- 

 tion before they will produce the same bulk per acre, or 

 the same size in individual trees as may be seen in 

 France, Belgium, or Central Germany. It is well known, 

 and the figures given in the table on page 98 confirm it, 

 that the midlands and south of England can produce timber 

 of both these species second to none in size and qualit}^ 

 but it is usually produced on first-class soil, and under 

 arboricultural conditions which have favoured the quick 

 production of timber in early youth. In thick, crowded 

 woods, resemliling those of continental forests, the average 

 height growth of most species in Britain falls below that 

 found abroad, although not perhaps to a marked degree, 

 if elevation is ignored altogether. For instance, crops 

 grown between 1000 and 2000 feet in Hanover or Belgium 

 are little if at all inferior to those grown between 500 and 

 1000 feet in the midlands of England or the southern 

 parts of Wales and Ireland. But while timber of fair 

 size can be produced at 2000 feet in the former countries, 

 it is scarcely possible to produce more than bushes or 

 scrub at that elevation anywhere in Britain. The highest 

 point at which we have personally seen trees grown in 

 Britain is 2000 feet in the Pennine Chain, and these were 

 white American spruce, about 10 feet in height, the 

 hardiest species in existence. In the same wood (Ash- 

 gill), timber of commercial value ceased at about 1500 

 feet, although occasional trees might be found higher. 

 In the Grampians instances of larch growing success- 

 fully up to 1500 feet or higher may also be seen. 

 Most observers of tree growth in Britain agree that an 

 average elevation of 1000 feet is as high as commercial 

 timber can be produced. Larch and spruce, on sheltered 

 aspects and comparatively good soil, will attain a height 



