THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
July 3- 
230 
extending from the Chiucha Islands in 13.40 to 15.50 
south latitude, from the river Pisco to the river Acari, a 
distance of 200 miles in a south-eastern direction, over 
a sandy desert. The extraction of guano from the 
islands in the canton of San Andres has been prohibited 
by the Governor of Carthagena. 
WOODS AND FORESTS. 
{Continued from page 54.) 
THE SCOTCH PINE (Pinus Syt.vestrts). 
We have high authority for contending that it is 
necessary to give “ line upon line, and precept upon 
precept,” in order to impress upon the minds of men 
the beauty and usefulness of any practice tending to 
advance any art or science. If any one art or science 
need to he constantly pressed upon the members of a 
community, it is the art of Arboriculture, whether for 
profit or ornament; and why ? Because the planter (or 
owner, more properly speaking) will most probably not 
live long enough to reap the reward of his outlay. Fie 
must, in most cases, expect that his children or heirs 
will enjoy the fruits of his labours. Yet, as I have 
repeatedly shown, the owner of young plantations 
formed by himself will have a great enjoyment in 
watching their progress, in attending to their well¬ 
doing, and, above all, in being conscious that his estate 
is improved, increased in value for his successors, and 
his country generally benefited by his patriotic efforts 
to clothe the waste places of the earth, making the 
“ wilderness to smile.” 
Many men have, no doubt, with some effect, devoted 
their powers, from time to lime, to spread abroad the 
spirit of planting, and stir up the owners of large tracts 
of country to improve them, and convert them into 
woods and forests, so as not only to give a warmer and 
more picturesque appearance to such wild, barren dis¬ 
tricts, but also to increase thereby the general resources 
of the Empire. 
I endeavoured to show, in my last paper, at the page 
referred to, how the barren, black, sandy wastes, at pre¬ 
sent growing nothing but Furze, Ferns, Heaths, or other 
wild, almost useless, shrubs, might be clothed with 
valuable timber; especially the Scotch Pine. I men¬ 
tioned that there are some varieties more valuable as 
timber than others ; also, the soil and situations in 
which this valuable tree arrives at the highest perfec¬ 
tion ; and some other matters connected with it, which 
I need not recapitulate here. It now remains only for 
me to give a few brief directions on—1st, Propagating; 
2nd, Planting; 3rd, Thinning and Pruuing; and, 
4th, Felling for use. 
1st. Propagating. —Whoever thinks of raising his 
own seedling Scotch Pines should write to some seeds- 
I man in Scotland to send him seeds selected from the 
best variety—that which Mr. Sang calls the P. Sylvcs- 
tris montana. The best time to procure the seed is 
] during any of the winter months. In the meantime, 
the ground to sow it in should be duly prepared. A 
light, sandy soil, clear of perennial weeds, is the best for 
the purpose. The site should be rather elevated, be¬ 
cause, though this tree is so hardy, yet the seedlings 
may be cut oil' by the late spring frosts, which are 
always most destructive in low-lying grounds. The 
land should be laid up in ridges in the autumn, to be 
acted upon and pulverized by the winter frosts. About 
the middle of March, in moderately dry weather, level 
down the ridges with a fork, breaking any lumps there 
may be in it, and digging it perfectly level. Let it remain 
so for a week for two, to dry the surface and become 
kind to work. 
Then, a few hours after a shower of rain, when the soil 
is in a friable, well-pulverised condition, proceed to set out 
the seed-beds three feet wide, with fifteen inch alleys or 
walks between them. Stretch a line on each side of a 
bed, and with a rake draw off about an inch of the soil 
into the alleys, drawing off half on one side and half on 
the other. This is called by nurserymen the bedding-in 
system. Sow the seed immediately, so thin that each 
plant will have an inch square to grow in. The Scotch 
Pine requires more room than the Larch in this stage, 
because it should stand two years in the seed-bed previ¬ 
ously to transplanting. Cover the seed with soil from the 
alleys, half-an-inch dee)), by the help of a clean, bright 
spade. This part of the operation requires a practiced 
hand to do it evenly, neatly, and quickly. When all is 
sown and covered up, rake the beds over very lightly, so 
as not to disturb the seeds, and finish off by stretching the 
line on the sides of each bed an iuch-and-a-half from 
the line of seeds; chop down the sides with the spade, 
and rake the alleys smooth to put out every footmark. 
The plot is ready then for the warm showers of spring ; 
to moisten the soil and cause the seeds to germinate. 
Should no rain fall, and the ground becomes dry, it is 
absolutely necessary to resort to the watering-pot. Oue 
with a fine rose must be used, and the evening is the 
best time for the work. Enough should be given to wet 
the ground thoroughly; but it should be laid on so gently 
as not to flood the earth. If convenient, it would be 
advantageous to cover the seed-beds with garden-mats, 
to prevent a too-great evaporation, and the sun from 
drying the surface too quickly. This covering to be re¬ 
moved as soon as the plants appear above the soil. If 
dropping weather ensues, they will require no further 
care, excepting diligent weeding. Weeds should never be 
allowed to advance above the seed leaf; they are very 
troublesome to pull up when larger, and besides that, 
the weeder is apt to draw up some trees with large 
weeds. 
Transplanting. —The best time for this important 
operation are the early spring mouths. The last week 
in February, the whole of March, and the first week in 
April, a space of six weeks, is the very best time of the 
year for transplanting young Fir seedlings. If planted 
in the autumn, and a hard frost takes place the following 
winter, those small-rooted plants will, when the frost is 
gone, be found standing loose above the surface. As the 
saying is, “the frost has thrown them out,” therefore it is 
better to transplant in spring as soon as the frost has 
gone out of the ground, and the surface becomes dry 
enough to work it. There are three things to attend to 
in transplanting seedlings, or, indeed, in transplanting 
larger trees. The first is the preparation of the soil 
where the trees are to grow; the second, the taking up 
the plants; and the third, the inserting them in the soil 
made ready for them. 
The first of these, preparing the soil, is simple enough. 
It means digging, mixing, and pulverizing; and the best 
season for this work is the latter end of the summer 
for the first digging, with a forking over in dry weather, 
after the new year has set in. The second operation, 
taking up the plants, should be so done as to preserve 
the roots as entire as possible, and no more should be 
taken up at once than can be planted the same day. 
The third part of the operation, the inserting the plants, 
is done in various ways. For the Scotch Pine, I prefer 
the one named trench planting. Whoever has seen 
box-edging planted will have a good idea of this mode. 
It may be described in a very few words. Opon across 
the piece of ground a trench, the soil from it may either 
be spread on the .surface, or, what is better, wheeled to 
the other end of the piece to fill up the last trench, then 
make the side of the trench the furthest from the opera¬ 
tor upright, using a lino to keep it straight. Set against 
it a row of seedlings, sixinches apart, and a trilie deeper; 
