REARING OP THE ESTABLISHED CROP. 



when only a single heavy plenary thinning is to be made accord- 

 ing to Seebach's method : First of all mark with a single splash 

 of 'white-wash all stems belonging to species to be spared and 

 otherwise presenting qualities that may render their reservation 

 desirable. Then after felling all the rest, go over the ground again 

 and put a second splash on those from among the remaining trees 

 which are most deserving of preservation and are at the same 

 time properly distributed. Now fell all the trees bearing only a 

 single mark, and then go over the whole ground a third time, put- 

 ting a complete ring of paint on those standing trees which are 

 finally to be left and which it will not now be difficult to judge 

 correctly. 



It goes without saying that the felling, conversion and export 

 operations should do as little damage as possible to the trees left 

 standing. Often the crown will have to be lopped before a tree is 

 felled, and the fall of the trees will in any case have to be carefully 

 directed. 



Plenary thinnings should be undertaken only when a sufficiently 

 strong, highly trained, conscientious and active staff is available to 

 carry them out to completion. 



SECTION IV. 

 Pruning and lopping. 



Trees may have to be pruned or lopped in order either (i) to 

 produce a certain clean length of bole without knots and of as 

 cylindrical a shape as possible, or (ii) to control and improve the 

 growth and shape of the crown, or (iii) to restrict the crown in 

 the interests of neighbouring individuals which they overhang or 

 press up against. As regards the first of these three objects every 

 one is aware that the higher up the crown begins, the more cy- 

 lindrical will be the shape of the bole below ; and as regards tho 

 second, we know that when a portion of the crown of a tree has 

 suffered damage from any extraneous cause whatsoever, the re- 

 moval of the injured portion by means of a clean cut will not only 

 arrest the progress of deterioration, but enable the crown to regain 

 its former vigour. 



On the other hand, pruning may be accompanied with serious 

 consequences to the value of the timber in a tree. If a green 

 living branch be cut off and the section remain exposed, even if 

 sap does not ooze out and form a nidus for fungus spores, littlo 

 radial rifts, as the wounded surface dries, will form, by way of 

 which atmospheric moisture will enter and filter downwards into 



