BRITISH FOREST TRKKS 175 



for by planting in single individuals, in wide rows, or in 

 small knotches or patches scattered here and there ; the 

 formation of patches or groups larger than twenty to twenty- 

 five feet in diameter is inconsistent with their natural habit 

 of growth and their general inability to protect the soil, 

 whilst their tendency towards the formation of a somewhat 

 widely-branching crown is apt to interfere with the normal 

 development of the ruling species. 



As these subordinate species are not intended to be 

 removed early in thinnings out of the beech, but to remain 

 for eighty or a hundred years so as to develop into good, 

 valuable assortments of timber, they must be carefully 

 tended throughout the whole period of their growth. Like 

 the oak, they are all light-loving species, and in general of 

 speedier growth than beech, although this advantage lies 

 more with elm and ash than with maple, or in particular 

 with sycamore, on situations that may be somewhat de- 

 ficient in atmospheric warmth. 



In general these forest trees, and particularly the maple, 

 thrive best on a moister soil than is congenial to the beech, so 

 that wherever patches of moist ground occur here and there, 

 they can be suitably introduced in larger patches and to a 

 greater extent generally than where the soil is merely fresh ; 

 for the protection of the soil, however, underplanting with 

 beech, silver fir, or spruce, is then often necessary later on. 

 A suitable admixture is seldom obtained by means of natural 

 reproduction of such subordinate species ; better results are 

 obtainable by sowing on small patches after previous soil 

 preparation. But perhaps on the whole the planting of strong 

 transplants deserves the more general practical application in 

 regard to all four species. 



Among conifers, the principal subordinate species intro- 

 duced into beech forests for the production of large 

 assortments of timber are silver fir and spruce. The former 



