THE UTILISATION OF LAND UNSUITABLE FOR AGRICULTURE. 17 



observable, the height and bulk of the trees becoming steadily 

 less as the hill is ascended. In the foregoing table the heights 

 of the Elms, Chestnuts, and Larch are about the same as the 

 others. The trees were carefully measured with rods, and the 

 heights given are interesting as showing also what an even top- 

 canopy different species preserve when mixed in a plantation — a 

 fact doubted by some who would multiply the difficulties of 

 forestry practice by treating every species separately. So far as 

 I have observed this plantation habit of trees is constant. In 

 our locality the Common Hawthorn in the open is more a bush 

 than a tree, but we have had examples in crowded parts of 

 Wharncliffe Wood where they were perfectly straight, and 

 reached a height of nearly 50 feet — drawn up by the taller Oaks 

 growing around them. Under such circumstances the trees do 

 not, of course, increase in girth at the same rate, but vary greatly, 

 as will be shown. 



The general conclusions to be drawn from these facts are, 

 that in planting poor lands advantage should be taken of 

 shelter wherever possible, by planting on the lee side of shelter- 

 ing objects, such as hills, and by planting thickly on open and 

 exposed plains, especially at the margins of the wood. The 

 most severe struggle with a plantation occurs when it is first 

 planted, and the struggle continues till the trees meet and 

 cover the ground, which covering protects the roots and stems 

 from cold and drought, and preserves a uniform temperature 

 about the roots, the effects of which are soon noticeable in 

 better growth, which continues as long as the conditions are 

 maintained. 



III. — Trees to Plant, and Tending, &c. 



Species to plant. — This is the first question that arises under 

 this head, and is an important one, because the returns from the 

 sale of timber depend very much on the kind produced. Timber 

 dealers find it best to have always a bit of everything on hand in 

 some proportion, and planters should proceed on the same prin- 

 ciple, keeping an eye to the demand and the value. The following 

 table, drawn from experience at timber sales over a wide area, 

 and from inquiries frequently addressed to me by consumers of 

 timber, gives a fairly approximate idea of the demand for 

 the different kinds of timber for a long period past. 



c 



