NOTIONS ON AETIFICIAL RESTOCKING. 221 



to their size : (i) small, (ii) medium, (iii) tall. The 

 first class comprises all those below three feet in 

 height ; the second those between three and six 

 feet ; the third those above six feet. Small plants 

 ought always to be preferred, unless special circum- 

 stances preclude their use ; success is more certain 

 with them. The success of a plantation depends 

 chiefly on the condition of the seedlings, which can 

 never have too many roots ; now it is impossible to 

 extract a plant of some size without leaving a con- 

 siderable portion of the roots behind in the ground, 

 and the older the plant, the greater will be the 

 number thus left. Hence it is recommended to use 

 seedlings of one, two, or at the most three years for 

 nearly every species. Medium and tall seedlings 

 should be employed only in restoring a species where 

 other seedlings already exist, or in wet places where 

 tall grass is to be feared, or finally when it is pro- 

 posed to grow pollards and those special trees of 

 which nearly all the branches are lopped off. 



If the seedlings used belong to the smallest 

 category, and have been raised in the nursery in 

 furrows or narrow trenches, they are put out directly. 

 But if they have been sown broadcast, or in trenches 

 from ten to twelve inches wide, and are to be put 

 out only in their third year or so, those in the 

 middle are often weakly and ill-supplied with roots 

 and foliage. Putting them out directly from the 

 seed-bed would result in almost certain failure. It 

 is better in this case to transplant them in nursery 

 lines, giving each a clear space of about four inches 

 in every direction. The soil being first well loosened, 



