THE ALDER. 



93 



found amidst the deep glens and ravines of Scot- 

 land. In very many instances we have seen it 

 put on so much of the bold, resolute character of 

 the Oak, that it might have been mistaken for 

 that tree, but for the intense depth of its green 

 hue. Nowhere will the tree be found in greater 

 perfection than on the wild banks of the river 

 Findholm and its tributary streams, where scenery 

 of the most romantic description everywhere pre- 

 vails." Trees of similar character are not un- 

 common on the banks of rivers in other parts 

 of Scotland, and in the north of England. On 

 the whole, though the Alder does not take a 

 high rank among our picturesque trees, we must 

 recollect that it often flourishes where no other 

 tree would live, and thus ornaments a landscape 

 which would otherwise be tame and naked. 

 It retains its leaves, too, until very late in the 

 year, and gloomy though their tone may be, we 

 forget this defect when nearly all other trees are 

 bare. 



The principal use of the Alder, when growing, 

 is to prevent the encroachment of rivers on their 

 banks, especially where a stream flowing through 

 a loose soil makes a sudden turn. Planters do 

 not recommend its being planted to flll up places 

 in moist woods, but that such ground should be 

 drained and planted with other trees. " For such 

 is the nature of the Alder that it attracts and 

 retains the moisture around it. This eflect is oc- 

 casioned by the nature of its roots, which are 

 chiefly composed of a huge mass of small flbres, 

 whose capillary attraction prevents the escape of a 

 redundant water in the vicinity of the plants. 

 This property of creating swamps we have re- 



