MIXED HARD-WOOD PLANTATIONS, 151 



for two years after, and finding them at the end 

 of that period in a healthy and vigorous growing 

 state, I next thin away all firs that are pressing 

 too much upon the hard-wood, without, in the first 

 place, having any respect to the thinning of the 

 firs among themselves ; for the hard-wood trees 

 being of the first importance, the firs are in this in- 

 stance only a secondary object. But as soon as I 

 have the hard-wood plants all properly relieved, I 

 next thin out a few of the firs also ; and in doing so, 

 I aim at keeping them close rather than thin, and that 

 with the view of giving as much shelter to the hard- 

 wood plants as is properly consistent with the health of 

 the whole. But, to be more particular upon this point. 

 It shows a great want of judgment in the manager 

 of plantations wherever firs are severely thinned 

 from among young hard-wood trees, particularly 

 in that earlier part of their existence relative to 

 which we are now speaking. The firs were planted 

 among the hard-wood with the view of giving them 

 shelter in order to nurse them up quickly : now, if 

 they be removed away many at one time, the hard- 

 wood plants will, no doubt, sufi^er much from the 

 check : if they be once checked by a severe thinning, 

 the trees never will afterwards attain that state of 

 health they would have had, had they been other- 

 wise dealt with ; and of course, in such a case, the 

 future value of the whole as a plantation will be 

 much lessened. Therefore, in all cases of thinning 



