Weeds 19 



Weeds are injurious in five ways : 



(1) By overgrowing the plantation and shutting out light and 

 air ; e.g., bramble. 



(2) By the ramification of their roots in the soil, by which the 

 nourishment of the tree is intercepted ; e.g., grasses generally. 



(3) By overlying the young plants in the winter and pressing 

 them down with their rotting stems ; e.g., bracken. 



(4) By constriction of the stem of the tree ; e.g., honeysuckle. 



(5) By harbouring injurious insects and fungi. 



Weeds on fertile soils. Fertile soils are particularly productive 

 of weeds, and possibly the bramble is the most dangerous, trouble- 

 some, and expensive to get rid of. Cutting it down and bruising 

 the young shoots until the forest canopy is formed is almost the 

 only resource available. Cutting alone merely increases its vigour. 

 Large planting operations, however, are seldom conducted on this 

 class of soil. 



Grass is sure to be present, forming a more or less dense 

 growth. It is, however, usually sufficient to press it away from 

 around the young trees with the foot twice a year. In some cases 

 it may pay to cut the grass for fodder, of course bearing in mind the 

 damage which the young trees may suffer from an inadvertent 

 wound. 



Weeds on marshy soil. Typical weeds indigenous to this class of 

 soil are the .various species of bulrushes, sedges, and rushes. 

 Drainage is an effectual remedy. 



Poplars, willows, and alders are the trees usually grown on this 

 class of soil, and, being of rapid growth, soon get clear of the 

 weeds. 



Weeds on rough upland pastures. The most familiar weeds on 

 this class of land are seedling birch, heather, gorse, broom, and 

 bracken, all of which are characteristic of rough mountain pasture. 

 Speaking generally, gorse and broom indicate a slightly better 

 class of soil than that on which bracken and heather flourish. 



The shoots of the self-sown birch tree are a very serious pest on 

 this class of land. Whilst upland pasture is being grazed by sheep, 



