73 



THE BRANCH-COPPICE METHOP. 



General plan— In certain parts of India, notably in hilly 

 or mountainous country, the inhabitants practise pruning or 

 lopping off branches of trees for firewood and manure or for 

 fodder or litter for their cattle. Where this practice prevails 

 the transport of timber to a distance is frequently out of the 

 question, and there is often consequeatly more material than 

 the people can utilize, while fodder during the winter is 

 urgently needed. In such cases the method cannot be con- 

 demned, as it is perhaps the sole means of furnishing the 

 fodder required ; and it may, therefore, sometimes be ne- 

 cessary to recognise it as a justifiable modification of the 

 coppice method. Conifers, which in the Himalaya are often 

 treated in this way, do not of course throw out shoots 

 like broad-leaved genera ; but the smaller branches left and 

 new shoots springing from buds on these branches replace 

 those removed. When necessary, the working of forests 

 according to this method may be organised in the same way 

 as for ordinary coppice on a short rotation of from 5 to 10 

 years. 



Modification of the branch-coppice method. — In the pasture 

 grounds of some countries there is practised a modification of 

 this method which consists in pollarding all the trees at a 

 height of 5 or 6 feet from the ground, so that the young 

 shoots produced may be out of reach of cattle. These shoots 

 are removed a few at a time, as in the coppice-selection 

 method ; and the working-plan consists in dividing the area 

 into a few coupes to be cut over in rotation, and in limit- 

 ing the size of the branches to be cut. The larger branches 

 bear seed from which a sufficient number of young trees are 

 produced to replace the old pollards as they decay ; but 

 reproduction however sought necessitates the exclusion of 

 cattle until the young trees grow out of reach. 



METHOD OF COPPICE WITH STANDARDS. 



The general plan.— The method of coppice with standards 



