AMONG THE PINES AND FIRS 215 
a case of ‘Hobson’s choice,’ and the pine must 
go where a crop of other trees can either not be 
produced, or are not likely to prove remunerative. 
Such land can often best be utilised by planting 
pines, to be kept in close canopy till the growth 
in height culminates and the natural demand for a 
larger growing-space seems to make itself impe- 
ratively felt. Then, usually between the thirtieth 
and the forty-fifth year, they can be thinned 
freely, yielding a good return in this way, and 
underplanted with whatever shade-bearing kind 
of tree seems to hold out the greatest promise 
of being profitable. This should not be difficult, 
because, under the close canopy of pine, the heavy 
fall of needles improves the land so much that 
its general quality and its productive capacity 
soon become far higher than they were at the 
time of planting. Thus close canopy is not only 
profitable for the growing crop, but it increases, 
de facto, the capital value of the ground planted. 
If, on the other hand, the natural manure with 
which the soil is thus enriched year after year 
by the dead needles be allowed to become dissi- 
pated through neglect of close cover, or of under- 
planting when the canopy becomes broken by 
