34 o BRITISH FOREST TREES 



material useful for many technical purposes, not to mention 

 the annual crop of nuts ; a rotation of three to four years 

 yields excellent withes for barrels, and good monetary returns. 

 Its coppice-stools maintain their reproductive power for a 

 long time, as the shoots take root for themselves, whilst 

 blanks can be filled, or greater density of the crop attained, 

 by the layering of living shoots, or the transplanting of 

 rooted shoots; both of these methods effect the desired 

 object more speedily and satisfactorily than by rearing 

 seedlings from the nuts. The best time for harvesting the 

 latter is in October, when they have acquired their full 

 flavour, and have been mellowed by a touch of frost. 



Hazel possesses very fair soil-improving qualities, and 

 often does good service in this respect as a subordinate in oak 

 coppices, where, however, care must be taken to prevent it 

 from interrupting the growth of the principal species. On 

 stony upland soils jvhere there is a deposit of good mould 

 between the rocks and stones, hazel-coppice often yields the 

 best returns that can be reasonably expected from the 

 ground. 



Alder Buckthorn is also a shrub indicating, like juniper, the 

 commencement of the deterioration of the soil, but it is 

 generally to be found only in woods formed of the broad- 

 leaved species of trees. It was formerly rather prized for the 

 preparation of charcoal for gunpowder, but of recent years 

 alder and beech wood have been more generally used for this 

 purpose, the former being solely used for the manufacture 

 of smokeless powder. Where it occurs in any quantity it 

 yields bean and pea-sticks where spruce and silver fir poles 

 are not available, also good sticks for umbrellas, walking- 

 sticks, and similar petty technical purposes. Like many 

 other shrubs, it is suffered to remain as underwood below 

 standards of light-loving species, in order to afford some 

 slight protection to the soil against insolation in places where 



