194. FORESTRY IN THE UNITED KINGDOM. 



against his pleasure, or against shooting rents, or the benefits 

 derived by the rest of the estate. 



Where the manager is not hampered in this way, and 

 where economic forestry is aimed at, as it would generally be 

 in the case of extended ati'orestation of mountain, heath and 

 other waste lands, the question of finance would be of the 

 first importance. The forester must decide what and how to 

 plant and how to treat his woods, so as to realise the highest 

 possible net returns. The answers to these and other ques- 

 tions practically require a treatise on Sylviculture and Forest 

 Management, for which the reader is referred to Volumes 11. 

 and 111. of this Manual of Forestry. On this occasion, 

 only short remarks on the afl'orestation of mountain, heath 

 and other waste lands and on a few selected types of woods, 

 as they now exist in the country, can be offered. 



1. Soil and the Selection of Species. 



Many varieties and qualities of soil are found on the 

 mountain and heath lands; hence the selection of the proper 

 species to plant, in the first instance, is of the highest import- 

 ance. No general rule can be laid down, and the selection 

 must be made on the spot in each case. There is, however, 

 a fundamental rule which runs thus : " Nerei- attempt to plant 

 a species winch is not thorougldy suited to the locality, in otlier 

 ivords, ivhich is not likely to thrive in it.'' 



Every disregard of this rule is likely to lead to financial 

 loss. It is quite astonishing how often the rule is sinned 

 against. Sometimes the planter has not a sufficient under- 

 standing of what species is most likely to thrive best in a 

 given case. This shortcoming must be met by proper instruc- 

 tion. In other cases, the planter has developed a fancy for 

 a certain species and proceeds to plant it under all conditions. 

 This is a most disastrous failing which the forester must 

 combat with all his might. The subject of selection must 

 be approached with an open mind and all personal fancies 

 absolutely put on one side. 



