DIRECT SOWIjra AND PLANTraG COMPARED. 327 



the nature of' the- low growth, useful or otherwise, that is already 

 on the ground ; or it may be to introduce a similar mixture into a 

 copse or to assure therein a continuous supply of seedling, shoots 

 in order to maintain the quality of the regrowth, in which case 

 plauting will be the general rule ; or it may be to raise a protec- 

 tive fringe of trees, where again planting will be almost invariably 

 adopted ; and so. on^ 



XI. Cbsl^ 



In comparing the relative cost of the- two method's,, two things 

 m>ust be borne in mind. In the first place, it is certain that plant- 

 ing is, as a rule, subject to fewer failures, and hence involves a 

 smaller outlay on repairs, the figure for which may often, in case 

 of indifPerent success, equal and even several times exceed the first 

 cost, so that the iirst cost alone is not a sufficient criterion by 

 which te gauge the expensiveness of either- method ;: ajid, in- the 

 second place, we know that as respects the first cost itself, the 

 smaller the planting material is, especially if it consists of seedlings, 

 the more nearly does planting in its results approach direct sowing, 

 and that with increasing size or age of the transplants that fi'gure 

 increases, not in arithmetical, bu-t geometrical ratie. But the ques- 

 tion of cost n>ust, under any circumstances, be subordinated to 

 that of success, and. becomes a deciding factor only when success 

 is to be obtained by either method ; and then, too-j if" direct sowing 

 is cheaper, the choice will depend also« on the answer returnable to 

 the question — Does the greater rapidity of results secured by plant- 

 ing at least compensate for the higher- expenditure it involves ? If 

 it does not offer a sufficient compensation, we must sow, otherwise 

 planting would be the method to adopt.. 



In India we have a^ yet no trustworthy data for comparing the 

 relative cost of the t-wo methods. In their ab.^sence the following^ 

 figures, taken from Gayer and referring to Bavaria, will be found 

 both interesting and useful. The average daily wage oi a work- 

 man is taken at 8 annas. 



Conifers sown, in plough- made furrows, -width of milti-Tated 



interval 4' ... _ ... ... ... Bb. 6-8 peracr* 



Scots' pine- or silver fir sown in, strips 2' wide, uncultivated 



interval 4' ... ... ... ... „ 8-14 „ „ 



Conifer yearlings planted 2' apart itt lines 4' apart .. „ 7-12 „ „ 



2-3 year old silver fir or Scots' pine planted 40" x 40" 12-18 „ „ 



Ball-planting 3-4 year old silver fir, &c ; distance of trans- 

 port moderate ... -. ... ... „ 16-24 „ „ 



Planting middle-size broad-leaved seedlings forced by re- 

 peated cutting back, 4' ■< 4' ...^ ... ... „ 24-50 „ „ 



Mound-planting 'if silver Hi, 4' x 4' .. 28-44 „ „ 



Planting large seedlings (6-8 yeara old), 56" x 56" ... „ 120-180 „ „ 



