750 XLVI. VERBENACEAE 



confined each year to a definite annual coupe, but may be carried out in the 

 prescribed sub-periodic block at any time during the sub-period. 



The better types of teak forest in Bombay and Madras are worked as 

 a rule under selection fellings of a similar kind. In North Kanara and Thana 

 the exploitable size fixed is a diameter of 18| or 24 in., or a girth of 6 or 6 J ft. 

 The rotation, where calculated, varies from 120 to 160 years, and the felling 

 cycles adopted vary from 15 to 30 years. The yield is usually fixed by number 

 of trees, and in some parts of North Kanara girdling is carried out two or 

 three years before felling. 



In the Allapilli forest of South Chanda in the Central Provinces teak 

 is worked under selection fellings with an exploitable girth of 6 ft., corre- 

 sponding to an estimated mean age of 175 years. 



Improvement fellings of the selection type are carried out in parts of the 

 Central Provinces and Madras, and in various parts of Bombay, particularly 

 in Khandesh. These fellings have for their object the removal of over -mature, 

 badly shaped, and otherwise undesirable stems, and are carried out under 

 a definite felling cycle, which ordinarily varies from 10 to 30 years, but is in 

 two oases as long as 45 years. These improvement fellings are often followed 

 by cutting back operations in the young crop, with the object of producing 

 straight coppice-shoots. 



It \\ill be convenient to allude here to the tending operations, termed 

 improvement felHngs, which are carried out as far as staff and labour permit 

 in the teak forests of Burma. These fellings are of two separate classes : 

 (1) ' ' improvement fellings, made in the interests of the old crop, and (2) 

 ' Y ' improvement fellings, made in the interests of the young crop. The 

 ' ' fellings are in the nature of a thinning in a mixed crop, and apply to trees 

 Avhich have passed out of the pole stage ; they are carried out as soon as 

 possible after the extraction following the main fellings, and the intention 

 is to repeat them at intervals of 15 years, though this interval is recognized 

 to be too long in many cases. The object of these fellings is to free promising 

 stems of teak and other valuable species by the removal of undesirable stems 

 which are interfering with their development, care being taken, however, not 

 to open the canopy to such an extent as to cause an invasion of weeds. 



The ' Y ' improvement fellings have for their object the establishment of 

 such natural reproduction of teak and other valuable species as may be found 

 on the ground. They are in the nature of weedings and cleanings, and consist 

 of the removal of weeds, bamboos, and inferior tree species which are inter- 

 fering with the development of seedlings, saplings, and poles. The cutting 

 back of badly shaped, damaged, or suppressed saplings is carried out at the 

 same time ; it has been found that badly suppressed saplings, if freed, do not 

 as a rule recover their vigour, whereas if cut back they may send up strong 

 new shoots. Where necessary, undesirable trees in the overhead canopy may 

 be removed, provided that the canopy should not be opened to the extent of 

 inducing heavy weed-growth which would suppress existing teak seedlings 

 and saplings. These weedings and cleanings are carried out as soon as possible 

 after the extraction following the main fellings, and are repeated as often as 

 necessary and until the young crop is safe from suppression. As these opera- 

 tions are of an intensive nature they are confined to areas where there is 



