WOODLAND WORK AND WORKING PLANS 201 



to become mature, or, if the area belonging to that period be 

 small, the clearing of Period 1 may be extended into it for 

 several years, and thus absolutely barren years avoided. 



The main object to be obtained is the arranging of the 

 clearing and replanting in such a way that a uniform amount 

 of income and expenditure will be assured in the future, 

 and the organisation of the work itself be simplified. Where 

 the total area of woodland is very small, this point is of 

 less importance, and may be ignored altogether; but, with 

 an area of anything over 500 acres, a steady progression of 

 both clearing and replanting should be kept in view. It is 

 not of course necessary that a piece of ground should be 

 cleared and replanted annually, as this might involve work on 

 too small a scale for economy, but the work of two or three 

 years may often be concentrated into one, according to 

 convenience, and this need not interfere with the general 

 scheme of organisation. 



The precise order of cutting adopted in Period 1 of 

 any working circle must be determined by local conditions. 

 Wind must not be let suddenly into young or middle-aged 

 plantations, the timber must be cleared so that it can be 

 conveniently got away, and the ground afterwards replanted 

 in compact blocks of 10 to 20 acres. Individual areas should 

 be bounded by, or touch the more important rides, where 

 possible, so as to facilitate the removal of the timber. On 

 hillsides the felling should be arranged in oblong strips, 

 running up and down the hill or obliquely across its face, as 

 wind is thus much less likely to affect the growth of ad- 

 joining plots, and the timber can be pulled down hill with 

 the least labour. Local conditions and the contour of the 

 ground must, however, decide all these points, and a great 

 deal must be left to those in immediate charge of the work, 

 as modifications may be necessary at the last moment, as 

 the work goes on. 



Such a simple working plan as we have sketched above 

 will be sufficient to meet the expectations of the majority of 

 estate owners, and will exceed the requirements of most. 

 The great points to be borne in mind, in any case, are 

 simplicity and the economical clearing and replanting of the 

 ground. Small units often mean neglected ones, while it is 



