IMPROVEMENT-FELLINGS 253 



pulled down, and the fall of this in turn will cause 

 damage to the crowns of other trees beyond, which are 

 also held by the strands of the same climber. It is also 

 impossible to guide a felled tree in its fall so as to do 

 little injury to the standing stock if it is held back or 

 diverted by strands of climbers. 



It is evident that improvement -fellings are very 

 delicate operations, which must vary in their nature from 

 place to place according to the requirements of the crop. 

 It is therefore essential that they be carried out by 

 skilled foresters. It is impossible to carry them out by 

 rule of thumb, and subordinates cannot be put in charge 

 of them. The only operation which can be carried out 

 under the supervision of a subordinate is climber-cutting. 

 If there are epiphytic trees, like several species of Ficus, 

 which threaten to constrict valuable trees, they may be 

 treated like climbers and cut through ; but all other 

 w T ork should be carefully supervised, even down to the 

 removal of unsound, crooked, and inferior trees, as there 

 may be special reasons for preserving them. 



