120 Practical Forestry 



As no hard and fast lines can be laid down, as a rule, the 

 size of the trees and the exposure of the positions in which 

 they are planted must determine the method of procedure to 

 be adopted. It may be that when growing in a low-lying, 

 sheltered valley, trees of even 8 or 10 ft. in height may be 

 perfectly safe without stake or tie of any kind, whereas 

 others of similar or even smaller size, growing in an open 

 position and exposed to the prevailing winds of the district, 

 will require a mooring of the most secure description, and 

 adjusted in the most efficient manner. For trees and 

 shrubs up to 6 ft. in height, a strong, sharp-pointed stake 

 should be driven firmly into the ground, within about 9 in. 

 of the main stem, and on the most exposed side. The stake 

 should be fully 7 ft. long, and driven, not perpendicularly, 

 but with the head slightly inclined from the tree, and in 

 the direction from which the prevailing winds usually blow. 

 A strong ligature of some kind, such as tarred rope or thick 

 matting, is then placed round the stem of the tree requiring 

 support, at about 4 ft. from the ground, and made fast to the 

 stake at a similar height. 



By crossing the tie between the tree and stake, a more 

 efficient job results, as there is then less room for the tree 

 to work in when rocking with the wind. It will thus be 

 seen that the nearer to the stem of the tree the stake is 

 placed, the greater will be the power of resistance. 



When the trees and shrubs are from 8 ft. in height and 

 upwards, but especially in the case of evergreen species, 

 stronger moorings than those just described will have to 

 be employed, and the following plan we have found suitable 

 for almost any emergency. A strong band of leather, or 

 several strands of tarred rope, are placed loosely around the 

 stem of the tree to be staked, and at, say, three-quarters of 

 its height. Three wires ordinary fencing wire does well- 

 are then joined to this collar, two on the most exposed 

 side and one on the other, and made fast to stout stakes 

 driven firmly into the ground, at a distance from the main 

 stem proportionate to the tree's height. In the case of 

 very large trees, or those that have been reinstated from 

 a fallen position, double wires are used in a manner similar 



