158 THE NEW FOREST 



have noticed that most of these fine pollard trees 

 stand not far from the old keepers' lodges. It 

 was to browse their deer that they cut these 

 vigorous old stems, as often as they would 

 stand it, and for obvious reasons they selected 

 those nearest at hand and these gradually 

 multiplied : at such places will be found grand 

 old stems of 7 and 8 feet in girth, with fine 

 spreading heads, that show clearly on examina- 

 tion the marks where they have been pollarded 

 three and even four times probably at intervals 

 of thirty years or so, thus prolonging their 

 existence and that as noble forest trees to a 

 period enormously in excess of that of the 

 ordinary holly shrub as we know it in gardens 

 and pleasure grounds. 



When the deer were removed, the reason for 

 pollarding and lopping of hollies went with 

 them. But luckily a new demand sprung up, 

 with the great increase of population, for holly, 

 and especially berried holly, at about Christmas 

 time. Fortunately for the hollies, and incidentally 

 for the Crown revenue also, this demand goes a 

 long way towards taking the place of the old 

 lopping for browsing purposes. If the demand 

 goes on, and the cutting is judiciously done, the 

 Forest may continue to hold its ancient holly 

 trees for centuries in the future as it has done 



