r 



94 BRITISH FOREST TREES. 



over by the ease of grubbing the roots for knees ; 

 and the whole brought to the shipwright will pro- 

 duce more than double the price that the straight 

 tree alone would have done. 



The forester should also eooamine and probe the 

 roots of his growing larch, even those of consider- 

 able size, in sound ground; and when several 

 strong horizontal spurs, not eocceeding four, are 

 discovered nearly straight, and from two to five 

 feet long, he ought to hare these roots to that dis- 

 tance, that they may swell, car ef idly pruning 

 away any small side-roots, and reserve these 

 plants as valuable store, taking good heed that no 

 cart-wheel in passing, or feet of large quadruped, 

 wound the bared roots. In exposed situations the 

 earth may be gradually removed from the roots. 



The rot in larch taking place in the part appro- 

 priate to knees, the forester cannot be too wary in 

 selecting the situations where there is no risk of its 

 attack, for planting those destined for this pm'pose. It 

 is also desirable, if possible, to have the knee timber 

 in ground free of stones or gravel, as the grubbing in 

 stoney ground is expensive, and the roots often em- 

 brace stones which, by the future swelling of the 

 bulb, are completely imbedded and shut up in the 

 wood, particularly in those places between the spurs 



