3(58 
THE COTTAGE GAllDENER. 
FliBIVUAIlY J'J. 
I 
I 
tluin a good walkiug-staff. Shall these be thinned? In 
another part the trees are so thin that the side-branches 
have all grown to a disproportionate length, the leading 
shoot itself not stronger than the branches; in fact, 
they arc mere bushes. In some other part, it may be, 
that improper trees (according to the soil) have been 
planted, and they have not grown at all, but have been 
choked by common Sallows, Alders, Thorns, and 
Hriers. This is, most certainly and most sadly, the i 
condition of the greater part of the woods in Great 
llritain. The remedy is the thing that is wanted. A , 
garden that has been neglected, and its w'ecds allowed to , 
scatter their seeds, cannot be got into good condition again | 
for years. The old adage, one j/eur's seedinfj causes seven 
nears weeding, aj)plies, in principle, to woodcraft as well , 
as gardcncraft. A neglected wood cannot be put into 
a good trim at once. The rough-shod method of ; 
thinning the trees till they are at the distance they ought ' 
to have been if thinned at the proper time, and 
trimming u]) the bush like formed trees, till they look 
like as many Jong handlcd birch brooms—these, sum¬ 
mary proceeding.s will not improve, nor cancel the years 
of neglect gone by. Trees thinned too severely are I 
greatly injured thereby. The sudden free circulation of ' 
cold air stunts their growTh ; and if, in addition to this, | 
what few lower branches they have arc pruned close off, | 
the cftect will bo most disastrous. [ have seen planta¬ 
tions so thinned and trimmed up that have stopped 
growth entirely for seven years. ! 
If the neglected plantation requires thinning in any 
part, or the whole, (hat operation should be done i 
gradually. The smallest and worst trees may be removed | 
the first j’car, perhaps, to the amount of one-eighth of ‘ 
the number, l.ct these be cut down close to the ground, 
and removed away. Then observe the rest, and if any 
have double loading shoots, reduce tliem to one; and, 
also, prune ofi' one or two side-branches of any that * 
may have too many, though there is not much fear of , 
that, for most of the branches of such thickly-grown 
trees will be dead. Should any dead branches be still I 
left on the trees, all such, without mercy, should be cut 
oif close to the stem wuth a sharp saw, the parts to be 
smoothed over wuth a sharp knife. Many trees have | 
had these dead shoots left on, and the consequences arc, 
those do.ad knots wo sec too frequently in wliat would, ; 
without them, have been good timber, hut, with them, : 
is rendered almost useless, being only fit for fire-wood. | 
After ttiis cautious thinning and pruning of such ' 
])arts of the wood as may have been too thick, then ' 
turn attention to the trees where they have stood thin, 
and have all their branches on looking like immense 
bushes. 1 confess, it is a difficult matter to judge what 
to do wuth such deformities. As is the case of the too ! 
thick trees, the dressing of these all-branch trees, so as 
to bring into good timber, is a w'ork of time ; but, wuth ' 
])atience, it may, nay, has been done, and the way is 
this—first to lix upon the best central branch to form ! 
the future bole, or stem, of the tree. Then cut clean off, i 
close to it, two, three, or four of the lowest branches. 
Ascend into the tree, and cut out two or three of the i 
central shoots near to the one reserved for the stem. 
Then, observe the rest of the branches, and shorten them ' 
in considerably, remembering always to leave a side- 
branch at the part where the cut is made. This may i 
bo called a thinning of the branches, as the other is 
the thinning of the trees, and this, too, must be pro¬ 
gressive. Too many branches must not be cut off at 
once. Better let too many remain on a tree that has j 
been neglected, perhaps, all its life, than take too many ' 
off at once. ! 
Again, should any parts of the wood, from having j 
been planted with improper trees, be overrun wuth wdiat ' 
may be termed forest-weeds, such as common thorns, 
and the like, or such soft-wmoded, useless trees as grow 
in almost any soil, then such a part should have all the 
rubbish cut clean away, the ground, if wet, be well drained, 
and then ])lantod anew wutli sucli trees as will grow in i 
such improved soil. As such isolated spots in such a : 
wood would be sheltered, all sound trees, of a moderate ! 
size, carefully removed with all their roots, and planted j 
immediately, would answer e(]ually as well as small : 
trees, and would sooner fill up the gap in the wood. ' 
Should there be, in such a neglected ])bintation, any ; 
old trees evidently at their full age, then all such should ^ 
be cut dowui at once and sold for wdiat they would fetch. ! 
Old, gnarled Oaks are often found in such a place, and ' 
sometimes arc very valuable wdicn cut iqi and ])olibhed, ! 
on account of the beautiful markings and shadings of ! 
the irregular layers of wood, or knots, on parts of such | 
trees ; yet, as trees to stand, they are worse than useless, i 
for they not only do not progress themselves, but occupy i 
the space that younger and healthier improving trees 
ought to occupy. 1 am, in my mind’s eye, imagining 
such trees in a young, thick, thriving plantation. Sucli 
1 would, without care or fear, cut dowm ; but in another 
situation, in an open part, or in a pleasure-ground, such 
ancient picturesque trees should stand for ever. J 
should value them as the apple of mine eye, and con¬ 
sider it little short than sacrilege if any daring hand 
should touch them with cither axe, saw, or knife; but 
old, decaying trees in the midst of a wood, I would cut 
down at once. In such situations, I have sometimes 
met with the stump of a tree with all the soil washed 
away, leaving a bundle of roots as thick as my leg 
visible. Sucli a stump, cut olf close to the ground, 
sent up a number of shoots fresh and healthy from 
most of the roots. These 1 tiiinned out, leaving the 
best and strongest. Such shoots grew rapidly, and, by 
being regularly thinned and pruned, made very decent 
trees in a very short time. 
All the above operations I am siqqiosing to be done 
in the first year of renovating the neglected plantation; 
I would then reconimcnd the whole of the trees to be 
let alone for two or tliree years, but not more, certainly. 
The thinned part will have shown considerable improve¬ 
ment, in the tree stems thickening and becoming clothed 
with small spr.ay, in consequence of the light admitted 
by the thinning out of the weakest and worst trees. In 
the case of pruning branchy trees, such will be found to 
have progressed in attaining a leader, and the main 
stem increased in thickness, and also part of the young 
spray will have made its appearance. The part entirely 
filled and newly-planted will have progressed also. The 
young trees will have just begun to grow, and the ' 
.Brambles, and Hazels, and Sallows, will have made i 
strong shoots. Now, in the first of these three cases, i 
the work to be done consists in taking away about one- I 
sixth of the worst of the trees left, looking over the re- [ 
inainder, and pruning them gently, leaving part of the 
young spray, to prevent the stem from cold and to draw 
up the sap. In the ca..se of the branchy, bushy trees, 
the work to be done to them is to take off about two 
more tiers of the lower branches, to shorten in the re¬ 
mainder, and to see that the main or leading shoot has 
no interruptivc neighbours to rob it of its full quota of i 
nourishing sap. ' | 
In the third case of replanting to fill up, sec to the 
young trees, and prune them willt the hni/e onlg, taking i 
away all other leaders but one, and shortening in the 1 
points of the overgrowing branches; then cut down 
all the wild shrubs and w'ceds. The former will make 
nice sticks for the flower-garden, and the latter will 
decay, and help to feed the newly-jdantcd trees. 'This 
thinning and pruning, judiciously and pcrseveriugly 
followed up, during ten or fifteen years, will quite renovate 
the wood in appearance, and increase its value tenfold. 
'T. Appleby. 
{To he continued.) 
