3 2 ° 
TIMBER AND TIMBER TREES. [chap. 
Sheds of a cool, dry, lofty, and permanent character 
are required for the proper seasoning of thick-stuff, 
planks, and deals; and it is desirable that the stacks of 
each of these should be of a moderate breadth only, a 
passage through the middle of the shed being necessary 
for the convenience of examining and working each 
parcel. The ground skidding should be like that of the 
timber stacks, placed level, and be at least a foot in 
depth, to admit of a free circulation of air throughout; 
upon these the planks, &c., should be laid flat, and open 
at the edges. Each tier should, as it rises, be blocked 
with dry battens ^ to I inch in thickness, by at least 
3 inches in breadth for deals; and i to 3 inches thick by 
at least 4 inches in breadth for plank, &c. These should 
be placed immediately over the ground skidding, as by 
so doing it will prevent buckling or warping, and keep 
the planks straight and fair looking; and further, care 
should be taken not to stack too high, lest the upper tiers 
should feel the effects of the sun’s heat through the roof. 
Boards may either be placed on end and blocked 
from each other by pegs or battens, or be placed upon 
racks fitted horizontally to receive them for seasoning. 
The former plan is in much favour in many places, and 
especially so in small private yards, where they usually 
stand in the open. I much prefer, however, a dry, cool 
shed, fitted with horizontal beams and vertical iron bars, 
to prevent the boards which are placed on edge from 
tilting over, and believe that the wood shrinks gradually, 
more evenly, and is less damaged by splits or shakes 
than by any other method. Boards season surprisingly 
well in this way, and when it is considered with what ease 
and facility they are worked in and out of the frame, 
there is, I think, much to recommend the plan to favour¬ 
able notice. 
