116 OUR FORESTS AND WOODLANDS 
acorns and beech-nuts into the ground, besides 
breaking this up so as to loosen it, aerate it, 
and prepare it generally as an effective seed-bed. 
Indeed, in many of the Continental woods, and 
especially in beechwoods, the herding of cattle 
and the pannage of swine form some of the usual 
steps taken at the time of a seed-felling for the 
regeneration of the mature crop of trees. It is 
cheap, and to a certain extent effective; and it 
forms a good basis for the assistance of natural 
regeneration by more elaborate artificial mea- 
sures in the way of hoeing or digging, sowing, 
and planting. 
A certain amount of soil-preparation to form 
a seed-bed for the acorns will almost always be 
necessary. Unless thus enabled to come into actual 
contact with the soil, perhaps not one-hundredth 
part of the acorns ever have the very slightest 
chance of germinating on the dead foliage or 
weeds which cover the surface of the ground. 
The necessary soil-preparation can conveniently 
be made in strips or patches, and of course 
additional advantage is gained if the acorns are 
dibbled into these. Otherwise, dibbling of acorns 
may take place over the whole area without 
