PURE WOODS 109 



As to Pure Woods. 



(1) All the shade-bearing conifers may be grown pure, 

 and are usually preferably so grown, except when making a 

 mixture by underplanting thinly foliaged trees. 



(2) The shade-bearing, broad-leaved trees, e.g. Beech, 

 may be grown pure, but at present prices it will not usually 

 be profitable except in a few districts. 



(3) Thinly foliaged, light-demanding trees should not be 

 grown pure unless 



(a) The rotation be very short (when the land will still be 



clean). 



(b) Underplanting take place before the canopy has 



become too broken. 



(c) Soil and situation be only capable of growing some 



thinly foliaged trees, e.g. Scots or Corsican Pines, 

 on poor, exposed places ; however, in such cases the 

 rotation should always be short. 



Finally, the oracular advice may be given to "always 

 plant pure woods unless there be a reason to the contrary." 



3. The Choice of System. 



This matter has already been dealt with. 1 It is, how- 

 ever, necessary, for the most part, to determine at the time 

 of planting, the particular system under which the trees are 

 to be grown, for certain trees are quite unsuited to some of 

 the systems. 



But, briefly, it may be repeated that for thinly foliaged 

 trees the best plan is to grow them pure 2 where possible, and 

 then to underplant them later on, thus forming a two- 

 storied high forest. Or they may be grown" as standards 

 over coppice, or preferably as high forest over coppice. 



Whereas for shade-bearing trees alone, even-aged high 

 forest will usually give the best results. 



In the case of land now under timber, which it is intended 



1 Vide Chapter II. 



2 The extreme risks incurred in growing pure Larch have, however, 

 already been referred to. 



