FOREST TKEE-PLANTING. 



Preparation of the Ground. 



In forming a plantation, the first and most important 

 point to consider is the preparation of the ground. Unless 

 this be carefully clone the planting will certainly be a 

 failure. It is useless to plant any trees until the scrub 

 and indigenous vegetation have been eradicated. The 

 simplest way to do this is of course to burn, plow, and 

 cross-plow. This will cost about 30s. or 2 per acre, 

 unless there are a good many roots to be got out. The 

 plowing, except on sand, should be as deep as possible : 

 and if one or two crops can be taken off the ground, it will 

 be all the better for the planting afterwards. 



In ground that cannot be plowed hilly, stony, or full of 

 roots digging by hand must be resorted to. This is very 

 expensive ; but the cost may be reduced to 4 or 5 per 

 acre by partial digging and throwing up the ground iato 

 ridges or mounds. When this is done, each sod as it is 

 taken out with the spade is laid roots upwards on the 

 adjoining ground. This kills both the vegetation in the sod 

 and the ground covered by the inverted sod. Unless the 

 ground wants draining, both the ridge and the hollow can be 

 used for planting. If it does want draining, then only the 

 ridges or mounds can be used. Mounds are best in 

 marshy places, and then the higher they are made the 

 better. 



The same object, i.e., the destruction of the indigenous 

 vegetation, is obtained by digging shallow pits and 

 throwing out the ground over the herbage around, the 

 shallow pits being afterwards used for placing the young 

 plants in, Shallow pitting with convict labour on the stony 

 slopes of Table Mountain averages 4 per acre, spacing 4 

 ft. x 4 ft. 



Higher up the mountain where the ground is too rocky 

 even for shallow pits, the sods are simply turned over and 

 seed sown on the inverted aod. Where the ground is both 

 bard and dry, deep pits may be made, even up to a yard 



JU 



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