April 20. 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
39 
WOODS AND FORESTS. 
THE OAK. 
(Continued from page 22.J 
Evert writer on Forest Trees agrees, that for the soil 
and climate of Great Britain there is no tree equals 
the Oak for grandeur, usefulness, and profit. Wo may 
all write in favour of this or that species of timber 
trees. One is in raptures in describiug the rapid growth 
and good useful timber of the Larch ; another takes up 
cudgels in favour of the Ash ; a third is equally zealous 
in commending the Elm; whilst others, myself in¬ 
cluded, are strongly advising the newly-introduced 
conifers (especially, of late, the Deodar), as being 
immensely desirable to plant largely; but after all this 
bother about new or old plants, all agree there is no 
tree, none whatever, that can vie with or supplant the 
glory of the forest and the park—the Oak. 11 is, gmr- 
excellence , the Englishman’s tree, because from its 
timber principally the wooden walls of old England 
have been built., for which its great strength and 
durability well fits it. For naval architecture, indeed, 
it is unrivalled, as every body knows. For articles of 
furniture, too, it is a great rival even to the mahogany 
of South America. Though not so much used now as 
formerly for flooring of rooms, forming stairs and 
balustrades, yet, whoever builds for the succeeding 
generations, like as our forefathers did, should use this 
long lasting timber. I have seen one very long room in 
that ancient place, Haddou Hall, in Derbyshire, the 
floor of which is laid with Oak, the produce, I was j 
told by our cicerone, of one tree only, which was cut I 
down for that purpose live or six hundred years ago, 
and is yet as sound as the day it was laid down. When 
1 saw it it wa3 as dark a colour as mahogany, and as 
smooth as glass, so that we were obliged to take tent to 
our steps, or we should have had not a very pleasant 
tumble on that hard polished surface. Is there any 
other timber that would have lasted so long and been 
so sound? I trow not! 
It is not, however, for its timber alone that the Oak 
is valuable, its bark also is valuable, as is well known, for 
tanning leather, and after that i3 used by gardeners to 
make hotbeds. It produces, also, what is called Oak- 
galls, useful for various purposes; but more especially 
for making that article by which I and others can 
communicate our ideas and experience to our fellow- 
men; I mean, as will be anticipated, that fluid with 
which I am now writing. Then, when young and 
straight, the branches or young stems make excellent 
stakes, inferior to none for durability, besides hoops, 
rails, posts, and various other uses, as the auctioneers 
bills say, too numerous to mention. 
I might have saved myself all this praise and enu¬ 
meration of the valuable qualities of the Oak to us, 
more especially, for I rest assured that every reader 
well knows its value; but as I intend to write a few 
papers on its culture, I could do no less than remind the 
cultivator that he is planting for generations to come 
the means of defence; and a timber that will yield the 
greatest profit in the long run, providing it is planted 
properly in a suitable soil and situation. 
The two points of soil and situation shall be my first 
essay on Oak culture. Without these are attended to 
properly the plantation will be a disappointment. 
Now, the Oak, though perfectly hardy, will never 
form a goodly, fair tree in low, marshy ground ; and, on 
the other hand, if planted on thin, sandy soil, or rocky, 
stony land, its produce will be poor and stunted, though 
the wood in such situations is often exceedingly beautiful, 
in knotty, curiously-marked timber, very useful for small 
tables or doors. 1 once knew a gentleman (W. Brockle- 
hurst, Esq.), near Macclesfield, that purchased an old 
gnarled Oak, that had grown on a hill side, which," 
when sawn up into boards and planed, was so beauti¬ 
fully veined, that he had the principal part of his 
furniture, doors &c., made of it; and the house on : 
that account is the wonder of the neighbourhood. If I 
am not mistaken the tree was bought for ten pounds, 
and made articles worth a thousand. Yet, notwith¬ 
standing this, for general purposes the Oak should only 
be planted in a deep clayey loam, the subsoil to be 
moderately dry. If the ground is springy and cannot be 
drained at least four feet deep, the Oak, though it may 
grow fast for twenty or more years, will then become 
stunted, perish at the ends of the branches, aud die at a 
premature old age. 
Then, again, the situation of the Oak forest should not 1 
be too low, not only for the reason that water will be in 
the subsoil, but because lichens and other parasitic 
plants will grow upon the branches and effectually 
check their growth. Then, again, on elevated sites, the , 
strong blast of winds, as well as deficiency of soil, prevent 
the Oak from forming that straight, tall, clean timber 
so necessary to build the walls of our noble ships, as . 
well as to cut into planks for domestic purposes. From ; 
all this, it will be easily perceived that a moderate ! 
elevation above the sea, yet not a high and exposed 
situation, is the site to be chosen on which to plant ; 
this truly useful, as well as stately, ornamental tree. 
T. Apimieby. 
(To be continuer /.) 
COPPICE GROWTHS FOR FIRE-WOOD. 
In considering the kinds of wood proper to plant for 
fire-wood purposes, 1 may say, that in the counties of 
Herts, Beds, and Bucks, where such fuel is largely 
employed, Hornbeam is much grown and used for fire¬ 
wood purposes; and on dry lauds having a chalky 
bottom it seems as well adapted as any; and its 
qualifications for burning being of the best order, it 
might advantageously be introduced into other counties 
where fire-wood is much wanted, and a soil suitable for 
it; it. also bears cutting pretty well, aud stools out and 
grows again as well as most other hard-wood trees, but j 
it often happens that the growth of the first season’s 
shoots after cutting do not get ripened early enough in 
the autumn, so that its growth is prolonged until the 
season be over for its maturity; and the consequence is, 
the leaves hang on all the winter. This, however, rarely 
happens after the second season, which is much less so 
than the first, and 1 do not know that the tree takes any 
harm from its being so, the leaves, doubtless, protecting 
the embryo buds against the severities of the winter; 
but in cutting this wood in the winter, care must bo 
taken not to do it too closely, as the shoots are hut 
sparingly produced on the old stumpy part, this plan 
necessarily compels the tree to have that unsightly large 
scraggy bottom so much complained of by those who 
like such things to be trim and uniform; however, it j 
amply repays for the indulgence granted it, and oc- j 
casionally a large limb may be entirely cut away when j 
it gets aw'ay so very far from home, in the same way j 
that spurs are cut out of wall and other trained trees 
when they become so much elongated as to be no i 
longer endurable when growing. 
The Ash does not make the best kind of fire-wood, 
but it is often planted for the uses it is in other respects, 
as poles, &c., for different purposes; but the absence ot ; 
much of that spray which makes the Beech and Horn¬ 
beam so valuable, places this tree on the second place 
as one of utility that way. Nevertheless, it has one 
peculiar property not found in any other; the wood | 
burns nearly as well while green as when seasoned. 
The Elm is a much worse tree for fire-wood purposes 
than the Ash, the wood not being so good to burn. 
