OF OAK PLANTATIONS. 175 



as to wliich of the two last-mentioned systems he 

 should adopt; and that, of course, must be regu- 

 lated by his grounds being exposed or sheltered. 



Suppose that a tract of ground has been planted 

 with oak at seven feet apart, and the intermedi- 

 ate spaces made up with firs, to such a closeness as 

 to leave the whole plants over the ground at three 

 and a half feet distance from each other ; and sup- 

 pose that the oaks in such a plantation have been 

 planted and managed in one or other of the two 

 last-mentioned ways, as may be found most suit- 

 able in the case of the situation planted — the oak 

 trees will, when the plantation is about eight 

 years old, require to be carefully looked over, 

 and pruned in all cases where found necessary, 

 but not severely : for the oak, at no stage of its 

 growth, agrees with much pruning ; the wood is 

 of a hard cross nature, and any severe wound 

 made by the knife is not easily healed, even 

 although the plant be young ; therefore, pruning 

 should be sparingly practised upon them. All 

 that is necessary in the case of pruning the oak 

 trees at the stage above mentioned, is to prune 

 away one top in all cases where two exist, or 

 where more than two tops appear upon one indi- 

 vidual tree, to choose the best, and prune away 

 all the others; to lop off a part of any strong 

 branch that may have the appearance of gaining an 

 undue strength upon the regular proportions of the 



