PLANTING.

Planting, or the culture of trees, is a branch of agriculture necessarily of much more recent date than either the culture of grain and herbage plants, or the breeding and rearing of cattle. The culture of those plants which in every country supply the food of mankind, whether directly, or by nourishing the domestic animals used for food by man, must have exclusively occupied his attention for many ages; whilst the timber which was employed in houses, ships, and machines, or for fuel, was found in the native woods. Hence, though we hear of the culture of fruit-trees, and occasionally also of ornamental trees and shrubs, amongst the Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans, the cultivation of timber-trees on a large scale by art only took place in modern times. In the days of Charlemagne, the greater part of France and Germany was covered with immense forests; and one of the benefits conferred on France by that prince, was the rooting up of portions of these forests here and there throughout the country, and substituting in their room orchards or vineyards. Artificial plantations appear to have been formed in Germany sooner than in any other country, and apparently as early as the fifteenth century. In Britain they took place, though but sparingly, nearly a century afterwards. Planting, however, was by no means general in England till the beginning of the seventeenth century, when, in consequence of the extensive transfers of property which took place in the preceding century, on the seizure of the church-lands by Henry VIIL, much timber was sold by the new owners, in order to make good their payments. The quantity of timber thus thrown into the market lowered its price considerably, insomuch, as Hollingshed informs us, that the builders of cottages, who had formerly employed willow, and other cheap and common woods, now built them of as good oak as their lords. The demand for timber thus constantly increasing, and a demand for an extended surface of farming land going on at the same time, the natural forests became everywhere greatly circumscribed, till at last timber for naval purposes and house-building began to be imported, and the proprietors of land to think, first of protecting their native woods from the inroads of cattle; afterwards of enclosing pieces of waste ground, and allowing them to become covered with young trees from seeds carried thither by the wind or other accidental circumstances; and ultimately of sowing acorns and mast in such enclosures, or of filling them with young plants collected in the woods; a practice which exists in Sussex, and some other parts of England, even at the present day. Planting received a great stimulus in Britain soon after the breaking out of the late general war, partly in consequence of a real or supposed scarcity of timber fit for naval purposes, and partly owing to the high price to which the article for general usc rose, in consequence of the increased expense of obtaining supplies from other countries. Since the peace, the rage for planting, with a view to profit, has subsided; but there is still a universal taste for cultivating trees and shrubs, with a combined view to ornament and use; and there is also an increased and increasing taste for the introduction of trees and shrubs from foreign countries.

Having in this slight manner noticed the origin of planting, we shall next give a brief outline of its present practice in Britain; noticing in succession: LA general view of the different properties possessed by trees; 2. selections suitable for different purposes; 3. the nursery culture of trees; and, 4. the culture of trees in plantations.

It is necessary to premise, that in this article we confine ourselves entirely to trees which are well known in Britain, and quite hardy; and to the formation of such plantations as are made with a view to their timber-producc. Fruit-trees and fruit-shrubs, flowering shrubs of every kind, and ornamental plantations, we consider as belonging to gardening, and as already disposed of under the article Horticulture.

I.— General View of the different Properties possessed by Trees which may be cultivated in Britain.

The sort of trees which it is desirable to plant, is necessarily the first point which a proprietor will take into consideration before he commences a plantation. Trees differ from one another in many particulars: in magnitude; in slowness or rapidity of growth; in their suitableness for poor soils or rich soils, moist grounds or dry grounds, elevated exposed situations, or low and sheltered plains; in the texture, colour, and durability of their timber; in their delicacy or hardiness in any given climate; in their being difficult or easy to propagate and rear; in retaining their leaves all the year, or dropping them every autumn; in producing showy flowers or fruits; and in a great variety of other particulars. In regard to magnitude, those trees which, in the latitude of Britain, and in the same parallels of latitude throughout the northern hemisphere, attain the greatest height, are the spruce and silver fir, the larch, and the Scotch pine; and these also are the trees which, in most parts of Britain, produce the greatest quantity of timber in their trunks relatively to that contained in their branches, and that in the shortest time. The poplar, the willow, and some species of elm, arc rapid-growing trees, and produce a great bulk of head in a short period; but the timber of these trecs is not all contained in one straight trunk, as in the case of the pines and firs, a considerable portion of it being distributed among the branches. Hence, where the speedy production of timber is the main object of planting, the pines and firs above mentioned are decidedly the trees that ought to be preferred. The production of timber, however, is not always the sole object of planting. Effect, or, in other words, the production of the appearance of woodiness on an estate, is perhaps oftencr the object than mere timber. For this purpose the Scotch and English elms, the white, black, and black Italian poplars, the Huntingdon willow, and in some situations the birch, and in others, such as on the sea-shore, the sycamore, are the most desirable trees. Where the object is to clothe a sterile surface of dry sand, the birch and the Scotch pine are among the best trees that we have; and if the situation be exposed to the sea-breeze, the common and the Norway maple may be substituted for the birch and the pine; and, in the warmer parts of the island, the evergreen oak. For moist soils which cannot be drained, there are trees that have the remarkable property of sending their horizontal roots along the surface of the ground; among these are the white, the trembling, and the Ontario poplars; and, for the marshes of the warmer parts of the island, the deciduous cypress. There are trees which will grow near water, in situations where their roots can enter into it, but which will not grow in undrained soil, such as the different species of willow, and most of the poplars. It is a remarkable fact, that there is no tree in any part of the world which is truly aquatic; that is, which will spring up from the bottom of a pond or river. Had there been such trees created, there could then have been neither rivers nor lakes, and the whole of the terrestrial globe must necessarily have been either in a state of marsh or mountain.
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In general it may be observed, that trees are not so absolute in their choice of soils as for each species to require one of a different nature; on the contrary, on almost any kind of soil not beyond the average in point of moisture, dryness, or tenacity, all the known spceies of trees and shrubs may be grown to a tolerably mature size and age. In some soils, however, they will thrive better than in others; and the timber produced generally varies in quality according to the soil. Thus a rich soil, while it contributes to the rapid growth of the pine and fir tribe, renders their timber less durable; and the same law holds good, more or less, with regard to every other species of tree.

The influence of climate on trees is incomparably greater than that of soil; for, whilst any tree may be said to grow on any soil, every tree may be said to have its particular climate; that is, a climate in which, the soil and other circumstances being suitable, it will attain its greatest bulk, and its timber endure the longest-Hence, when we take the geographical and physical range of any particular species of tree, the oak, for example, we shall find that there is what may be called a central climate, where, when on suitable soil, it attains its largest size; and that as it recedes from this climate, whether by latitude or elevation, either into one which is colder, or one that is hotter, it gradually diminishes in size, till it at last appears in the form of a shrub. Thus the common oak, which in Britain attains its largest size in Sussex and Hampshire, dwindles into a shrub on the mountains of the Highlands of Scotland, and also in the north of Africa; its degeneracy being occasioned in the one case by extreme cold, and in the other by extreme heat. Even within the range of the climate of Britain, the absolute character of trees, relatively to climate, is made obvious. The English or narrow-leaved elm, which is supposed to be a native of Asia Minor, and also of China, attains a large size in the neighbourhood of London, producing a great bulk of timber in a short period, and ripening its seeds; while north of York it does not thrive, and in Scotland it is considered only as an ornamental tree. The Lombardy poplar, which is known in the central counties of England to attain 100 feet in height in forty or fifty years, is nowhere seen of a timber-like size in Scotland; and it may be observed of the sweet chestnut and the walnut, that though they are grown both for their fruit and their timber in many parts of England, yet that they cannot be profitably employed for either purpose north of Newcastle.

Climate, relatively to trees, may be considered in regard to its average temperature throughout the year, to its temperature in summer and winter and in spring and autumn, and to its degree of atmospheric moisture. A high average temperature is no proof that a climate is suitable for trees; but a high summer temperature is suitable for many kinds, though the temperature of the winter may be very low. Thus the oaks and many other trees of North America, attaining there a prodigious size, survive a winter as cold as that of St Petersburg, where no native oaks of any kind are ever found; but the oaks of North America enjoy a very high temperature during summer, which rapidly develops their foliage and young shoots, and fully matures the latter, so as to enable them to withstand the most rigorous frosts of winter. In England the average temperature of the year is as great as that of the oak countries of the United States; but our summers are comparatively cold, moist, and gloomy; and though our winters are so much milder than those of America, yet the spongy, unripened, young shoots are always more or less injured by the frost. Another disadvantage of a country having a mild winter is, that the trees of those countries which have a very severe winter come into leaf earlier in the spring than the indigenous trees of the mild climate; and frosts being more or less prevalent at that season, they are proportionably liable to injury from that cause.

Evergreen trees form a very important division of the ligneous kingdom; and of these there arc two classes, very distinct relatively to climate and temperature. The first of these classes comprises the needle-leaved trees, such as the pine and fir tribe, which will endure a degree of cold as great as that in which any deciduous tree will thrive; and the second, the broad-leaved evergreen trees, such as the holly, the box, the laurustinus, the laurel, the evergreen oak, the cork-tree, and the evergreen mangolia, all of which are trees of comparatively mild climates, and which are always found in a natural state on islands, or on continents at low elevations, and at no great distance from the sea: hence the very considerable number of evergreen trees which will endure the open air in Britain, compared with those which stand through the winter in the same parallel of latitude on the continent.

Of the trees cultivated in Great Britain, only a small proportion are indigenous. A considerable number arc natives of other parts of Europe, and about two thirds of the whole are from North America. Of these North American trees there is scarcely one that is worth cultivating in Britain for its timber; and the reason seems to be, chiefly, that our climate is not sufficiently hot and light in summer to bring that timber to maturity. The truly useful timber-trees of Britain arc those which are indigenous, such as the oak, the ash, the broad-leaved elm, the Scotch pine, &c.; or those which are found in the same hemisphere and in the same parallels of latitude, such as the larch, the spruce fir, the silver fir, &c. Of all the trees which are cultivated in Europe, that which is most to be depended on for the strength and durability of its timber is the common oak; and next, and perhaps equal to it, is the larch. The trunk of the oak-tree, when freed from the soft or outer wood, and thoroughly seasoned by exposure to the atmosphere, will endure an unknown period of time in buildings and machines; and, even when split up into thin laminae, and put up in the open air as fencing, without any painting or other preparation, it has been known to last for upwards of a century. The common European oak is found to be more durable as timber than any of the American oaks, even when grown in America, unless we except the live oak; and there is perhaps no timber in the world equal to it for ship-building, excepting the teak-wood of India. The most generally useful timber grown in Britain is the Scotch pine; but as this timber is also imported from the north of Europe, and a substitute for it from North America in great quantities, it is not planted in Britain nearly so extensively as it otherwise would be. The timber of the larch is undoubtedly of greater durability than that of the Scotch pine; but being apt to warp, and not being so easily worked, it is less convenient for the purposes of house-carpentry and joinery. The timber of the common ash is valuable in the construction of agricultural instruments and machines, and it is one of the few woods which are almost as valuable when young as when of mature age. The wood of the broad-leaved elm is strong and durable, but that of the English and Dutch elms is much less so. The wood of the poplar, and that of the willow, when exposed to constant atmospherical changes, speedily decay; but when thoroughly seasoned, and afterwards kept perfectly dry, they will last for centuries. In general, it may be observed, that every description of timber, when at maturity, if thoroughly seasoned, and preserved in an atmosphere tolerably uniform in point of dryness, will last a long period.

The great majority of trees which are planted in Britain may be considered as ornamental; for though the timber of all of them is more or less useful, yet, if the mere production of timber were the main object of planting, all trees except the oak, the larch, the Scotch pine, and two or three others, would be rejected, either on account of their [7:17:781]slow growth, or of the inferior quality of the timber which they produce in our climate. Trees may be considered as ornamental, from their general shape, from their foliage, from their flowers or fruit, or from their rarity. In order that the shapes of trees may be displayed to advantage, it is necessary that they should stand singly; and when this is the case with some species of trees, such, for example, as the different species of the pine and fir tribe, their shapes become strikingly different from what they are when grown in masses. The Scotch pine, when drawn up in close forests, produces a clean, straight trunk, free from branches for the greater part of its height; but when by chance or design it stands singly, it throws out gigantic branches on every side, and becomes one of the most irregular and picturesque-headed of trees. But of all the trees which assume ornamental shapes in consequence of standing singly or nearly so, the most remarkable is the cedar of Lebanon. When this tree is grown in masses, it shootsup with a straight, clean trunk, and terminates in a small, spiry top; but when planted alone, and allowed to spread its branches on every side, it throws out its gigantic arms in successive tiers, and formsan irregular pyramidal mass, unequalled for grandeur, singularity, and picturesque beauty, by any other tree of the temperate regions of either hemisphere. All trees indeed become comparatively the same naked poles with scanty tops when grown in masses, and all assume irregular and picturesque forms when grown singly. Hence, whenever trees are grown chiefly for the purpose of displaying their shapes, they ought to be placed at such a distance from each other as that their branches may not touch; which in practice is effected by scattering them in groups in parks or pleasure-grounds, or planting them in hedgerows. Trees which are valued as ornamental chiefly for their foliage, fruit, or flowers, will obviously display these to the best advantage when standing singly; but for such an object isolation is much less necessary, as the ornamental foliage will be displayed even when the plantation is in masses, and seen at a distance; and the flowers and fruits by planting the trees in the margins of plantations of other sorts.

II.— Selections of Trees for particular purposes.

The object of the preceding remarks is to communicate some general ideas on the subject of selection, and on the properties of particular species; and we shall next pursue the same subject more in detail, by giving the names of the principal trees deserving of culture in Britain, thrown into groups characterized by some property common to the whole.

Needle-leaved or Resinous Trees are characterized by straight erect trunks, regularly furnished with branches in tiers, which never, except under particular circumstances, acquire the size of timber. They never send up shoots from the collar or stool when cut over by the surface. The leaves are narrow, or needle-shaped, without veins, and they are evergreen. The seeds are produced in cones, and the whole plant is more or less resinous. They belong to the Gymnosperms of the natural system, which form an order intermediate between the Dicoyledoneae, and the Monoco-tyledoneae.

Larix Europaea, Dec., is the most valuable species for its timber, which is of great durability, both in its young and mature state. Young larches, five feet or six feet high, and the spray of larch-trees of any age, last a very long period, when intertwined with larch stakes, so as to form a dead fence. Young trees from ten feet to fifteen feet in height are found, in the neighbourhood of Farnham and other places, to form the most durable hop-poles; and the durability of the mature timber, in every department, both in civil and naval architecture, has been placed beyond all doubt, by the experience of John duke of Atholl, as recorded in the Transactions of the Highland Society of Scotland, vol. xi. p. 165; and Loudon’s Arboretum Britannicum, vol. iv. p. 2387. 1he bark of the larch is also of considerable value in tanning; and the leaves being deciduous, the tree is more favourable to the growth of grass under its shade, than any other species of pine or fir. The larch is readily increased by seeds which are ripened in abundance in Britain; and it prospers best in cool, argillaceous soil, moist rather than dry, and placed at a considerable elevation above the level of the sea. The larch is subject to various diseases, and, in certain soils, to the decay of the heart-wood; but very little is known at present, either of the cause of these diseases, or of their prevention or cure. The larch cultivated in Britain is a native of the Tyrol, and of the Alps of Switzerland; but there are some other‘species or varieties, natives of Siberia and North America, which, however, are considered as scarcely worth culture as forest-trees.

The Scotch pine, Pinus sylvestris, L., is, next to the larch, the most valuable needle-leaved tree grown in Britain. Its timber forms the yellow deal of the Baltic and Norway; and it is unequalled by any species of pine or fir timber contained in any other part of Europe, or North America. The best Scotch-pine timber grown in Britain is produced in the native Highland forests; but there is reason to believe that artificial plantations, on soils and situations as nearly similar as practicable, would produce timber of nearly equal value. It has been the practice for many years past to decry the Scotch pine grown in Britain as a timber-tree; and as we have now no difficulty in importing deal from the north of Europe, this condemnation has been assented to by many without due consideration. If, however, we could import no pine or fir deal from any other country, and were obliged to grow it ourselves, we would ask where is the tree that would produce it in so short a time, and of so good a quality, as the Scotch pine? This tree is readily increased from seeds, which, unfortunately, as is the case with several other trees, are produced in the greatest abundance on stunted trees, or, at all events, on trees not remarkable for their large size, or the durability of their timber. Hence it becomes desirable to select the seeds from the best varieties, and this is now done systematically by the principal Scotch nurserymen. The Highland variety, with horizontal branches, P. sylvestris horizontalis, Arb. Brit., is the variety at present of highest repute. The Scotch pine is a native of the continent of Europe, but not of any part of America.

The spruce fir, Abies excelsa, Dec., is, as a British timber-tree, next in value to the Scotch pine. The young plants and the spray are almost as durable as those of the larch; the trunk grows straighter, more erect and slender, than in that tree, and when used with the bark on, as poles or as fence-wood, it is equally durable. The spruce makes much better hop-poles than the larch; but as the trunk of full-grown trees seldom attains a diameter of above one or two feet at the ground, even in countries where it is a native, the trunk can very seldom be profitably sawn up into boards. The great value of the tree is for poles of every kind, from those fit for the hop, up to the masts for the smaller ships. In most parts of Europe, all the poles used in the scaffolding employed in erecting buildings are formed of this tree. The spruce fir ripens seeds abundantly in Britain, from which plants are as readily raised as in the case of the Scotch pine and the larch. It prefers a soft soil, rather moist, and only attains a great height in sheltered situations; but it Will grow to a size fit for hop-poles or fencing in a short time, and anywhere. Like the Scotch pine, it is subject to few diseases. The spruce fir is a native of the north of Germany, Sweden, Russia, and Norway, but not of Britain or of North America. There are three or [7:17:782]four species of spruce natives of the latter country, but they are of no value as timber-trecs.

The pinaster, Pinus Pinaster, Ait., is by no means adapted for general culture in Britain, and therefore scarcely merits to be ranked among our ncedlc-leaved timber-trces. In some parts of England, however, particularly in Norfolk, considerable plantations of this tree have been raised; and it is found in deep sandy soil to produce a considerable bulk of timber in a short time. It has also the advantage of thriving better when exposed to the sea-breeze than any other pine or fir. The wood is not so durable as that of the Scotch pine; but it is of the same colour, and may be employed in the joincry of ordinary apartments. In general, however, it is by no means sufficiently strong for the roofing, joists, and other carpentry of dwelling-houses. A great use of the tree in France, and particularly in the neighbourhood of Bordeaux, where it is extensively grown on the sandy wastes, is for the production of resin, tar, and pitch, which are obtained by incisions made in the trunk, and by subjecting the wood to the action of fire. Seeds of this tree are ripened in England; but they may be obtained in any quantity, at a very moderate rate, from Bordeaux. The young plants require more care in transplanting than those of most other pines and firs, being furnished with a stronger tap-root than any of them. The pinaster is a native of the south of Europe and north of Asia, but not of America. It has been introduced, however, into most countries, probably from the large size and handsome appearance of the cones. Accordingly, specimens of this tree have been sent home from China, New Zealand, St Helena, North America, &c.; and the produce of the seeds from these places are commonly, but improperly, treated by nurserymen as varieties.

The silver fir, Picea pectinata, Arb. Brit., in favourable soils and situations produces a great bulk of timber in a comparatively short period; but the timber is much less strong and durable than that of either the spruce fir or the Scotch pine. The⅛tree is of slow growth for the first ten or twelve years of its existence, and the leading shoot is at that age very apt to be injured by spring frosts; nevertheless, even in the north and west of Scotland it has been known to attain to the height of 100 feet in sixty or seventy years. The timber is white, and makes excellent flooring for bed-rooms. The tree ripens seeds in Britain, though more sparingly than the spruce fir, and plants are easily raised. It is in general healthy, though the points of the shoots are occasionally destroyed by frost or by insects. The silver fir is a native of Central Germany, and of the Alps of Italy and Spain; but of no other country. There are other species of Picea, natives of North America and Nepaul; but relatively to Britain they can only be considered as ornamental trees.

Other needle-leaved trees might be enumerated as attaining a timber-like size in the climate of England; but there is not one of them that we think can be ranked in value along with those already mentioned as timber-trees. Of the American pines, that of which we have had most experience in this country is the Weymouth pine, Pinus Strobus, L., which furnishes the white pine-wood of American commerce; but this wood, grown in any given situation in Britain, is far inferior to that of the Scotch pine grown in the same locality; and there are only a few situations in England where the Weymouth pine will produce the same bulk of timber as the Scotch pine in the same period. The other American pines, as timber-trees adapted for Britain, scarcely deserve notice. Pinus taeda, serotina, and rigida, have attained a timber size in a few places in England; but the time they have required to do this, even under the most favourable circumstances, precludes the hope of their ever becoming British timber-trees. Several Californian species of pine have recently been intro duced; but half a century will be required to enable us to judge of their suitableness for this country. The Californian spruce fir, Abies Douglasii, is the most promising needle-leaved tree that has been introduced from that country; but it remains to be proved whether we shall ever be able to rank it with the common spruce. Of Nepaul pines there are two species, P. excelsa and P. Lam-bertiana, which resemble the Weymouth pine; and there is a spruce fir, Abies Smithiana, Arb. Brit., A. Morinda, Hort., which promises to be as hardy as the Norway spruce; but the other pines and firs of the Himalayas are all rather tender. The cedar of Lebanon, if planted in masses, like the larch or the Scotch pine, would, in good free soil, produce abundance of timber, but of far inferior strength and durability to what the Scotch pine would produce similarly treated. However ornamental, therefore, this tree may be, it cannot be recommended as fit to be cultivated for its timber. There are some European pines and firs which deserve to be noticed, as possibly containing some trees among them that might be cultivated as timber. Among these are the Corsican pine, Pinus laricio, Poir., including several varieties, among which, as we think, may be reckoned the black pine of Austria, Pinus Austriaca, Hoss, as well as the Pyrenean pine, Pinus Pyrenaica, La Peyrouse, P. Hispanica, Cook. All these species or varieties appear to thrive in the climate of London; and there is a Corsican pine in the arboretum at Kew which is upwards of eighty feet high. Whether the rate of growth, and the strength and durability of the timber, will ultimately prove equal to that of the Scotch pine, appears to us doubtful. We think, however, that in point of bulk of timber, the Corsican pine would equal the Pinaster. The Cembrian pine, P. Cembra, L., of which there are two varieties, one a native of Switzerland and the other of Siberia, grows as rapidly even in Scotland as it does in its native localities; but it is of extremely slow growth everywhere, and not worth cultivating as a timber-tree. Specimens in the climate of London, which have been nearly 100 years planted, have trunks only forty or fifty feet high, and from a foot to eighteen inches in diameter at the ground. The yew-tree, Taxas baccata, L., though it attains its full perfection in this country, being indigenous, yet, from its slow growth, and the little demand for its timber, it cannot be recommended to the planter whose main object is profit. The arbor vitae, evergreen cypress, deciduous cypress, and juniper, all belong to the needle-leaved division of trees; but none of them are worth cultivation with a view to profit.

Broad-leaved Trees, in contradistinction to needle-leaved, are classed, according to their timber, in two subdivisions, hard-wooded trees, and soft-wooded trees. They are characterized by large trunks and widely-spreading woody branches, and broad leaves with branching veins; they send up shoots from the collar or stool when cut over by the ground; and they are deciduous. They belong to the Dicoyledoneae of the natural system.

The hard-wooded Timber-trees of Britain are characterized by the comparative hardness and durability of their wood, and consist chiefly of the oak, ash, elm, beech, sweet chestnut, walnut, and locust or false acacia.

The British oak may be considered as including two species or subspecies, the stalked fruited, or most common oak, Quereus Robur pedunculata, Arb. Brit., and the stalk-less fruited, or less common oak, Quereus Robur sessiliflora, Arb. Brit. The latter species or subspecies is found to grow more erect and more rapidly than the other, more particularly if the soil be good and deep. The two sorts, are found indiscriminately mixed together in many parts of England, as in Woburn Park, Bedfordshire, and in various parts of Sussex; in other places one species exclusively prevails, as at Tiberton Park, near Hereford, where there [7:17:783] are some of the largest oaks in England, on a deep, loamy soil, and almost all Q. R. sessiliflora. At Welbeck, in Nottinghamshire, on the other hand, there are a great many oaks, almost exclusively Q. R. pedunculata. In all the places mentioned, the trees are the remains of native forests. Though the wood of the oak is the strongest and most durable of that of all British timber-trees, the tree is not always that which the planter would make choice of with a view to profit, on account of the slowness of its growth. It has, however, this advantage, that as it bears a higher price than any other British timber, so it will pay better at a distance from the market; and thus, while oak will pay after conveying it fifty or sixty miles to a seaport, elm will scarcely pay at half that distance, and the soft woods at still less. Oak plantations are also more valuable than others when in a young state, on account of the value of their bark. From the value of oak as ship-timber, the price of trees fit for that purpose is always considerable; though what is paid for the largest trunks employed in naval architecture will not remunerate any one for the number of years they must have stood on the ground. Accordingly we find that the governments both of France and England grow this description of timber exclusively in national forests. The wood of the oak has also the advantage of being applicable to a greater number of uses than that of most other trees. Houses, ships, furniture, and machines, may be formed almost entirely of oak, and consequently there is a ready sale for this kind of timber almost everywhere; hence the oak may be more planted in Britain than any other hard-wooded tree. It is easily raised from acorns, which ought to be collected from the tallest and handsomest trees. The British, or naval oak, as it may perhaps be more properly called, is a native of Britain and most parts of Europe, but not of Asia, Africa, or North America. There are several subordinate varieties, but none worth notice as timber-trees, excepting the kinds which we have noticed.

The ash, Fraxinus excelsior, L., is in most parts of Britain next in value as a timber-tree to the oak. The wood is chiefly used in the manufacture of agricultural implements, such as ploughs, handles to spades, mattocks, handles to carpenters’ implements, carts, waggons, threshing-machines, &c. Young ash-trees, and ash poles and suckers, arc also much in demand for crate-ware, hoops, whip-handles, walking-sticks, and especially for hop-poles. Before the general introduction of cast iron in machinery, ash-wood was much more in demand than it is‘at present. The tree requires a good, deep, loamy soil, dry rather than moist; and a situation naturally sheltered, such as the steep banks of glens, rivers, or lakes. As the value of the timber depends chiefly on its toughness and elasticity, the tree is best grown in groves or masses, in consequence of which, where the soil is good, the growth is rapid, and the trunk is drawn up free from large side-branches. The tree is easily propagated from its seeds or keys. It is a native of Central Europe, but of no other part of the world. There are several species of ash natives of North America, and one or two of Europe; but these are of no value in this country, excepting as ornamental trees.

Of the elm there are two species, the English or narrow-leaved elm, Ulmus campestris, L., and the Scotch or broadleaved elm, Ulmus montana, L. Between these two species there are several varieties, or hybrids, such as the Dutch elm and the Huntingdon elm, the latter by far the most valuable timber-tree of the genus. The narrow-leaved elm can hardly be considered as a timber-tree in Scotland, but in the central districts of England its rapid growth, straight trunk, and ample spreading head, constitute it a magnificent tree; and the timber is useful for some important purposes in ship-building, as well as in the construction of machines and agricultural buildings. The Scotch elm is a hardy tree, of rapid growth; but, unless planted in masses, it seldom produces a straight handsome trunk. Its timber is much more durable than that of the English elm, or of any of the hybrids between the species. It was formerly much used in agricultural carpentry, in rural machinery, and in common household furniture. The Scotch elm produces abundance of seeds, which, if sown as soon as they are gathered, often come up the same year; but the English elm and the hybrids produce seeds very sparingly, and are almost always propagated by layers, or by grafting on the Scotch elm. One remarkable difference between the English and Scotch elms it may be useful to notice, viz. that the latter never throws up suckers from its roots; and it is therefore peculiarly valuable as a stock for the English elm, and for those varieties or hybrids between the species which do throw up suckers. There are some other species and varieties of European elms, and several kinds of American elms, but none of them are deserving of culture in Britain as timber-trees.

The beech, Fagus sylvatica, L., acquires a large size, particularly on chalky or sandy soils. It is a very handsome tree in every stage of its growth, but the timber is not remarkable either for strength or durability. It was formerly much used in mill-work and turnery; but its principal use at present is in the manufacture of chairs, bedsteads, and a variety of minor articles. It is a native of England, and of various parts of the continent of Europe. There are some varieties, particularly the purple beech; and there are one or two species natives of North America, but none of them deserve notice as timber-trees. It is propagated by its mast, which it produces plentifully in fine seasons.

The hornbeam, Carpinus Betulus, L., is an indigenous tree, which attains the same height, but not the same diameter of trunk, as the beech, to which it bears a general resemblance, but is in every respect greatly inferior. It is propagated by its nuts, which it produces in abundance. This tree and the beech were formerly highly valued for making lofty hedges, on account of their retaining their leaves great part of the winter.

The sweet chestnut, Castanea vesea, Gaertn., is generally ranked next to the beech as a timber-tree; but in that character it has little or no merit. The tree is magnificent in appearance, rivalling, when full grown, the British oak; but it differs essentially from that tree in its timber not increasing in value as it increases in age. In Britain, and also in France, it ¼ τ as formerly believed that the roofs of the oldest cathedrals, and of Westminster Hall and other buildings, were of chestnut; and it was thought, in consequence, that the tree had formerly been more abundant, both in Britain and on the Continent, than it is at present. Subsequent inquiry, however, proves all this to be a mistake; and Daubenton and various others have shown that the timber called chestnut in old buildings is referable to the chestnut oak, Quercus Robur sessiliflora, Arb. Brit. It is worthy of remark, that some of the ancient writers describe a grove of chestnuts as extending northwards from London, and abounding in wild beasts; and that the remains of the indigenous woods at Hampstead, in the Earl of Mansfield’s grounds, are of the chestnut oak. The timber of the sweet chestnut, when not more than of forty or fifty years’ growth, forms very durable posts for fences and gates; being, according to some, more durable in this capacity than oak itself; but whenever the trunk of the tree becomes of larger dimensions than six or eight inches in diameter, the timber is found to be shaky; and at eighteen inches or two feet in diameter it has already begun to decay at the heart. In a young state, when the stems are not above two inches in diameter at the ground, the chestnut is found to make durable hoops for casks and props for vines; and of a larger size it makes good hop-poles, though the stem tapers rather too much for that purpose. It is a native of Asia, the north of Africa, and of North America; and some think it a native[7:17:784] of Britain. In the south of England, in fine seasons, it ripens abundance of fruit, from which plants are easily raised. There are a number of varieties, both in Britain and on the Continent, which are highly valued for the qualities of their fruit; but none of these, nor any of the American kinds, are worthy of being cultivated for their timber.

The common sycamore, Acer Pseudo-Platanus, L., is a tree of the second rank, seldom attaining the height of any of those that have been hitherto mentioned. It has, however, the merit of withstanding the sea and mountain breezes better than most other timber-trees; and its wood is valued in turnery, and for a variety of minor purposes. It produces abundance of seeds, which, like those of the ash, are called keys, and it is easily raised in the nursery; but it does little good in plantations, unless the soil be good and tolerably dry. It will neither thrive on very stiff clays, nor on dry sands or chalks. There are several species of Acer, natives of Europe and North America; and that which comes nearest to A. Pseudo-Platanus, as a timber-tree, appears to be the A. obtusatum, Arb. Brit., a native of Hungary and Calabria, but it has not yet been tried in plantations made with a view to profit. The Norway maple, A. platanoides, L., is a hardy and very interesting tree; but neither it, nor any of the other species, either from America or Europe, seem to deserve cultivation for their timber. If we made any exception, it would be in favour of the common fieldmaple, Acer campestre, L., which forms a very curious wood for the cabinet-maker.

The common birch, Betula alba, L., is another tree of the second rank, which is worthy of culture in inferior soils and situations, more especially as coppice-wood. The spray, in some parts of the country, is sold to the besom-maker, and makes a valuable return. The tree seeds freely, and is in every stage of its progress easy of management. There are several species of birch, natives of North America, which attain the size of timber-trees, and all of them have been introduced into this country, and tried in British plantations; but there is not one of them which can be considered otherwise than as an ornamental object, or as one of botanical interest.

The false acacia, or locust, Robinia Pseud-Acacia, L., may be placed amongst the timber-trees of the second rank. It is of unquestionable beauty, and much has been said of the value of its timber. when of a certain age, this is of great hardness and durability, and it lasts a long time as posts, or as trenails or wooden pins, for bolting together ships’ timbers. For the latter purpose, however, iron and copper are now generally used, both in Europe and America. The false acacia has been much recommended by Cobbett and a host of other writers for hop-poles and props for vines; but though it has been extensively tried in England for the former purpose, it is now utterly neglected, being found rarely to grow straight and clean, and, when used, being much less durable than the ash.

Amongst hard-wooded trees of the third rank, the timber of which is of some use, are the mountain ash, Sorbus domestica, L. ; the white beam-tree, Sorbus Aria, L. ; the wild apple, wild pear, wild cherry, and wild plum, the hawthorn, the holly, the laburnum, and perhaps one or two others. we could hardly recommend a plantation to be made solely of any of these trees; but when a few are introduced by way of variety or ornament, it is useful to know that their timber is of some value. The laburnum, the holly, the yew (which last we have included under the needle-leaved trees), are by far the most valuable of the trees of the third rank. The heart-timber of the laburnum is almost as dark and hard as that of ebony, and that of the holly is of a beautiful white. The timber of the yew is veined, and its beauty may be increased by judicious staining. The roots of the thorn, the yew, and of most of the third-rate trees, are often beautifully veined, and employed in cabinet-making and veneering.

Soft-wooded Trees are distinguished by the comparative rapidity of their growth, and the softness of their wood, its whiteness, and its limited duration. The principal of these worth cultivating in Britain as timber-trees, are the poplar, the willow, the alder, the lime, and the horsechestnut.

The poplar, Populus, L. There are several species of this tree, which well deserve culture with a view to their timber, where the soil is good and deep, and where the roots can reach water without being saturated by it. The white and gray poplars, Populus alba, L., and P. canescens, L., are hardy, of very rapid growth, attaining a height of thirty or forty feet in most parts of Britain in ten or twelve years, and producing a beautiful, smooth, compact, white timber, well adapted for flooring bed-rooms, and for a great many minor purposes, either in its native colour, or stained black in imitation of ebony. The black Italian poplar, P. mo-nilifera, Dec., is an equally rapid-growing tree with the white poplar, and produces a beautiful pale-yellow timber. The common black poplar, P. nigra, does not grow so rapidly as the last, and seldom produces a straight trunk; but its timber is homogeneous, of a yellowish white, and takes a fine dye. The aspen, or trembling poplar, P. tremula; and the Athenian poplar, P. Graeca, are of slower growth than the white or black poplars, and they have a beautiful, smooth, homogeneous, white wood. There are a number of other species of poplar, chiefly natives of America, and the Lombardy poplar, which is a native of Persia; but none of these are worthy of being planted as timber-trees in the climate of Britain.

The white willow, Salix alba, L., is a rapid-growing tree, and produces a great bulk of timber in a short period. The wood is white, soft, and sometimes slightly veined with blue. When kept dry, and well ventilated, it will last a long time, and has been found in buildings which have existed upwards of a hundred years, in a perfectly sound state. The Bodford willow, Salix Russelliana, L., grows with about the same rapidity as the white or Huntingdon willow, and its timber is of the same quality. The crackwillow, Salix fragilis, Z., is a tree of a smaller size, but its timber is useful for a variety of purposes; and the bark of this, and of most of the other species, may be used in tanning. There are a great many species and varieties of willow natives of Europe, or of North America and Asia; but, excepting the three above mentioned, we do not consider any of them as worth cultivating for timber.

The alder, Betula Alnus, L. ; Alnus glutinosa, Dec., is an indigenous tree, of smaller size and much lower growth than the poplars, or tree-willows; but its timber is more valuable from being more compact, less liable to twist, and having a fine mahogany tinge. The tree is a native of Britain, and of most parts of Europe, on moist soils by rivers; and it is readily propagated by seeds. There are some other European species; and two, Alnus incana, and Alnus cordifolia (the latter lately introduced from Naples), may probably prove useful as timber-trees, as they both grow on dry soils; but, from the experience which has yet been had respecting them, they can only at present be recommended as ornamental.

The lime-tree, Tilia Europaea, L., is a well-known soft-wooded tree, of some value for its timber, which is used by musical-instrument makers and carvers. It is a native of Europe, and is generally propagated by layers. The blossoms produce the whitest and most delicate honey in the world. There are some American lime-trees, but they scarcely attain the size of timber-trees in England.

The horse-chestnut, Aesculus Hippocastanum, E, is a rapid-growing tree in good soil; but its timber is perhaps the least valuable of the class to which it belongs, as it has [7:17:785]little strength, and, unless kept dry, is far from being durable; but it is useful for some husbandry purposes, such as linings to carts, wheel-barrows, &c.; and it takes a ready dye as a substitute for ebony.

The only soft-wooded trees that can be recommended for culture with a view to profit, are the white, gray, black Italian, and common black poplars, and the white and Bedford willows.

Hedge-trees and Shrubs Plants which are useful for forming hedges are of as great importance to the planter as those which are valuable for their timber. Almost all trees planted in rows, with the free admission of air and light on every side, will become clothed with branches from the ground upwards; and if these are occasionally cut in, they will form gigantic hedges, more or less compact; but some trees are much better adapted for this purpose than others; and among those of the first class, the best are the beech, the hornbeam, the elm, the lime, the Lombardy poplar, and the spruce fir. The best of the second class are perhaps the common birch, Sir Charles Wager’s maple (Acer eriocarpum), and the evergreen oak; and the best of the third class are the common thorn, the crab, the sloe, the wild plum, the buckthorn, the barberry, the holly, and the yew. By far the best of these for British field-hedges is the common hawthorn, and the next best is the wild crab. The sloe or black thorn makes an excellent hedge; but it throws up so many suckers, that it requires constant attention to keep it within bounds. It forms, however, an excellent barrier for picturesque plantations, where it is allowed to spread itself in every direction. The holly, were it not for the slowness of its growth, would form the best of all hedges, both for gardens and fields, as its leaves are little liable to be injured by insects; and, being an evergreen, it neither harbours weeds nor vermin at its roots. Birds are also much less apt to build in it than they are in deciduous hedges. It has only two disadvantages that we are aware of, viz. the slowness of its growth, and its imperviousness to wind in the winter season. On this last account, when on damp clayey soil, it has a tendency to prevent the drying of arable lands in spring. Were holly hedges occasionally introduced among those of the common thorn, they would add very greatly to the beauty of the country in the winter season; and, on dry uplands, they would form excellent shelter for stock. The common furze sown on the top of a high bank forms an effective hedge in a short period, but it is of no great duration. On moist soils fences may be made for planting rows of willows or poplars, and in situations exposed to the seabreeze the elder may be planted; but such fences can be hardly considered as hedges, from their want of compactness and density of foliage.

Trees and Shrubs suitable for Coppice-wood and Undergrowth. — One property required for all these plants is, that they should stole or spring up from the collar or stool when they are cut over; and the true undergrowths are only to be found among such shrubs as will grow under the shade of trees. There are a great many woody plants which may be cultivated as coppice-wood; indeed there are few of the broad-leaved trees and shrubs which will not answer for this purpose, but the locality must determine the preference. In soft, wet soils, the birch, the alder, and the apple-leaved willow, are amongst the most common and useful trees. In drier soils, the ash forms a most valuable coppice-wood, supplying handles for agricultural implements, stuff for hurdles, hoops, wattles, and a great many other useful articles. In good, deep, loamy soil, the oak forms an excellent underwood; and if the situation be at a distance from a market, it is by far the most valuable that can be employed, as the bark alone will produce a sufficient profit, and, from its portable nature, it can be sent to a greater distance than timber.

Ornamental Trees and Shrubs include by far the greater number of woody plants in cultivation; though many, perhaps the whole of them, produce wood which, when it can be obtained of sufficient size, may be applied to some useful purpose. As already observed, we exclude altogether from consideration in this article, flowering and fruit-bearing trees and shrubs. We also exclude all those that are rather delicate, or require particular kinds of soil; and shall confine ourselves to trees and shrubs which are considered ornamental from their general form, and which may be introduced into the margins of ordinary plantations in most parts of Britain. We shall arrange these under the heads of evergreen and deciduous.

Evergreen ornamental Trees and Shrubs. — The most ornamental of these, and one which will thrive in every part of Great Britain, is undoubtedly the cedar of Lebanon. It is somewhat delicate when young; but, if brought forward in pots, placed where it is finally to remain when of the height of eighteen inches or two feet, and carefully planted, and protected from cattle and vermin, it soon makes a vigorous growth, and becomes a handsome tree, even in the Highlands of Scotland. The seeds of the cedar of Lebanon, when left in the cones, retain their vitality for a number of years; the cones arc sometimes imported from the Levant, but more generally obtained from English trees. Where proper care can be bestowed on the seeds and the soil, it would be an improvement to sow them where they are finally to remain; because the cedar, and all the pine and fir tribe, depending principally on their surface-roots, suffer more from confinement in a pot, or transplanting from the open nursery, than trees having powerful tap-roots. The Deodar cedar differs in general aspect from the cedar of Lebanon, in having foliage of a whitish or glaucous hue. It appears to be as hardy as the other, and will probably soon become as common. Cones are imported from the Himalaya Mountains, where the tree is indigenous; or it may be grafted on the common cedar, or raised from cuttings. All the pine and fir tribe may be described as highly ornamental, and a great many of them will endure the open air in the coldest parts of Britain. The Weymouth pine, Pinus Strobus, is a very hardy ornamental tree; and still more so is the Pinus Cembra, which is of slow and erect growth, and retains the beauty of youth longer than any other pine. The Pinus excelsa is a very hardy and very ornamental species, but it is at present rare. Pinus Banksiana, and P. inops, are curious and very ornamental species. Some of the Californian pines, particularly P. ponderosa and P. Sabiniana, appear to be quite hardy. Among the ornamental spruce firs may be mentioned Abies Smithiana (A. Morinda, Hortd), a native of the Himalayas, which closely resembles the common spruce, and is apparently as hardy; it is readily propagated by cuttings, and by herbaceous grafting on the common spruce; and the trees already planted will probably very soon produce cones. The largest tree of this species in Britain is probably that at Hopetoun House, near Edinburgh. The Douglas fir, Abies Douglasii, is a very handsome tree, apparently as hardy as the common spruce, but differing in the dark-green colour and somewhat two-rowed disposition of its leaves, from which it appears intermediate between the common spruce and the silver fir. It has already attained the height of eighteen or twenty feet in different parts of Britain, and has produced cones. The Cephalonian fir, Abies Ce-phalonica, Arb. Brit, is a very handsome tree of the same kind, and of recent introduction; and which, having withstood the winter of 1837-38, is probably hardy enough to become an ornamental British tree. It is very readily propagated by cuttings, and cones might doubtless be imported from Cephalonia. The black and white spruces of North America are well known ornaments in our shrubberies; and there are some Californian species, such as Abies [7:17:786] Menziesii, which will probably soon be added to their number. The hemlock spruce (Abies Canadensis, Mich.') is one of the most ornamental of fir-trees; it is very hardy, and ripens seeds in different parts of England. One of the finest specimens is at Strathfieldsaye, in Hampshire, the seat of the Duke of Wellington. Among the ornamental silver firs, the first in point of grandeur is the Picea Web-biana, Arb. Brit. ; but, even in the climate of London, it suffers so much from the spring frosts, that it is doubtful whether it will ever become a very ornamental tree in England. Nevertheless, though the severe winter of 1837-38 seriously injured this tree, it did not kill it; and probably, as it increases in age, it may be later in protruding its young shoots, and thus be more likely to escape the spring frosts. Even the silver fir, which attains the height of 100 feet and upwards in many parts of Britain, is yet frequently injured by frosts during the first twenty years of its growth. Picea pichta Fraseri, and some other species and varieties, natives of Siberia or North America, are as hardy as the balm of Gilead fir, Picea balsama, Arb. Brit. The Chili pine, Araucaria imbricata, is a noble tree in its native country, and appears to be much hardier in the climate of Britain than has generally been imagined. Young plants which have been two or three years established in the open ground passed the severe winter of 1837-38 without any injury, which renders it not improbable that it may ultimately prove as hardy as the common cedar. The evergreen oak, Quereus Ilex, Z., is a hardy evergreen tree, of which there are several varieties. It is readily propagated from its acorns, which are ripened in abundance in this country, or may be imported from the Continent. It will thrive in any deep dry soil, and forms excellent hedges, or shelter to a dwelling-house. The cork-tree, Quercus Subet, Z., is of a corresponding character, but rather more tender. The holly, the common yew, the Irish yew, and the boxtree, are evergreens universally known and admired. They are perfectly hardy in every part of Britain, and deserve a place in every plantation.

The Portugal laurel and the common laurel form very ornamental trees, or large shrubs; and, from their glossy foliage, they are particularly beautiful in winter. The alaternus and the phillyrea form large bodies very ornamental. The arbor vitae, of which there are two species, is very hardy, and forms a permanent fastigiate low tree. The red cedar, Juniperus Virginiana, L., the Phoenician juniper, and some other species of juniper, are at once hardy and ornamental. The cedar of Goa, Cupressus lusitanica, L., is a beautiful evergreen, with glaucous foliage, but somewhat tender; nevertheless, in Ireland it has attained a great size. The common cypress, Cupressus semper virens, L., grows vigorously in the central districts of England, but scarcely thrives in the northern counties. The Arbutus is one of the handsomest of evergreens, and is admired for its flowers and fruit, no less than for its foliage and general form. There are several varieties and species which endure the open air in the climate of London, but which are found rather tender farther north. The sweet bay, Laurus nobilis, L., forms a bushy low tree in the climate of London, and in the south of England has attained the height of sixty feet; but it suffered much from the severe winter of 1837-38, and may be considered, on the whole, as rather tender.

Sub-evergreens are trees which retain their leaves through the winter in a green state, and drop them late in spring, immediately before the development of the new leaves. The principal British trees of this description are certain varieties of the Turkey oak, and more especially the Fulham oak, and the Lucombe oak. These are trees of the first rank, and in the central districts of England become magnificent objects. Turner’s oak, Quercus Tumeri, is also sub-evergreen, and forms a handsome tree of the second size. Quercus virens, the live oak of America, forms a sub-evergreen tree in the climate of London, but farther north it is to be feared that it will be found rather tender.

The common privet, especially when cultivated in good soil, becomes a sub-evergreen bush, and, when trimmed to a single stem, a handsome small tree; and to it might be added some others, such as Crataegus Mexicana, Photinia serrulata, Berberis aristata, Aristotelia Macqui, and Cotone aster frigida, affinis, acuminata, and nummularia, all of which are quite hardy in the climate of London, and also in Ireland, but rather tender in the north of England, and in some parts of Scotland.

Deciduous ornamental Trees and Shrubs. — We shall notice the hardiest of these in the order in which they occur in the natural system. Magnolia acuminata is perhaps the only species of Magnolia that can be considered truly hardy in most parts of Britain; and, from its large leaves, and curious greenish-blue flowers which afterwards change to yellow, it well deserves a place either on the lawn, or in the margin of plantations. Μ. cordata, tripetala, and conspicua, are quite hardy in moderate climates; but Μ. conspicua flowers so early that it is apt to be injured by spring frosts. The tulip tree, Liriodendron Tulipifera, L., forms a tree of the first rank in the climate of London, and attains a considerable size in the milder parts of Scotland; for the beauty of its foliage, independently altogether of its flowers, it deserves a place in every collection. The Hungarian or white-leaved lime-tree, Tilia Europaea alba, Arb. Brit., is a tree of the second rank, of very great beauty, and nearly as hardy as the common lime-tree. From the effect of its mass of white foliage among the green leaves of other trees, it becomes useful for breaking formal lines, directing attention to particular objects, or harmonizing white buildings with verdant scenery. The red-wooded and yellow-wooded lime-trees are very ornamental, and also the cut-leaved variety. The American limes are sufficiently hardy to attain the size of trees in the climate of London, and, from their leaves being much larger than those of the European limes, they are very ornamental. The maple, Aeer, L., is a genus which contains some of the finest ornamental trees that occur in British plantations. They are all valuable for coming early into leaf and early into flower, as well as for the many angled forms of their leaves, and the beauty of their buds. The variegated leaved varieties of the common sycamore form very ornamental objects, but, like all variegated leaved trees, their greatest beauty is in spring, when the leaves first expand. The variety with white striped leaves is well known, and is very generally planted; but the yellow-leaved variety, or Corstorphine plane, though by far the most beautiful, is scarcely known, except in the neighbourhood of the original tree. The purpleleaved variety is a very striking one, having the under surface of the leaves, more especially when they first come out in spring, of a dark purple. The hairy fruited, or Sir Charles Wager’s maple, Acer eriocarmm, is a very elegantly shaped tree, with beautifully cut leaves, and conspicuous reddish flowers, which appear in February; it ought never to be omitted in plantations having the slightest pretensions to ornament. The red flowering or scarlet maple, A. rubrum, resembles the last tree in foliage; but its flowers are of a much darker red, and the tree is of less vigorous growth. In autumn the leaves die off of an intensely deep red, insomuch that the tree attracts attention even at the distance of a mile or two. Where it thrives, it may certainly be considered as the most ornamental of all the maples. A. Tataricum and spicatum are low trees, the first a native of Tartary, and the last of North America; they are remarkably hardy, come early into flower, and their keys and leaves die off of a fine yellow or red. The snake-barked maple, A. striatum, is a beautiful tree, whether [7:17:787]we regard its leaves or its bark; it is a native of Pennsylvania, and therefore quite hardy in Britain. A. macrophyl-lum, the large-leaved maple, is a remarkably fine tree, with leaves sometimes nearly a foot in diameter; it appears to be as hardy as the common or the Norway maple, and its growth when young is very rapid; though, having been only lately introduced from North America, it is as yet scarcely known in Europe. The Norway maple, A. pla-tanoides, is so hardy that it might almost be considered as a timber-tree; but being inferior in this respect to the common maple, it, and its different varieties, are more generally to be ranked as ornamental. The sugar maple, A. saccharinum, in Britain, is one of the most tender North American maples; it bears a close resemblance to the Norway maple, and, like it, its foliage dies off of a very rich yellow. A. obtusatum, a native of Hungary and of Calabria, is a remarkably fine vigorous-growing tree, bearing a considerable resemblance to the sycamore, Acer Pseudo-Platanus. A. Opalus is a very handsome small tree, with round, coriaceous leaves, finely cut at the edges; this tree is little known and seldom planted, though few objects are better adapted for a small lawn. The round plaited-leaved maple, A. circinatum, is a rare species from North America; but one of great beauty of foliage, and apparently quite hardy. A. Monspessulanum is a small tree of great beauty, and in some situations sub-evergreen. The common or field maple, A. campestre, is one of the hardiest and most beautiful of small British trees: the most ornamental tree of this species is the Austrian variety, A. campestre Austriacum, Arb. Brit., which forms a beautiful single object on a lawn, and also very good garden hedges. The Negundo, or box-elder, Negundo fraxinifolium, Dec., a native of North America, is a beautiful tree, with its leaves cut in the manner of those of the ash, and a fine, smooth, darkgreen bark. The foliage, when it first appears, is of a fine yellow, and when mature it is of a pale green. It is a desirable object, as a single tree, or in the margin of plantations. The different species or varieties of the horse-chestnut are all trees remarkable for the beauty of their foliage, but more especially for that of their flowers. The common species is known to every one, but the scarlet and red flowered varieties, and the yellow and pale flowered kinds, all comparatively of recent introduction, only require to be seen to be ardently desired by all lovers of trees. The pavias, or smooth-fruited horse-chestnuts, are much smaller trees than the rough-fruited kinds, and they are all extremely beautiful. P. rubra, flava, discolor, hybrida, neglecta, macrocarpa, and macrostachya, deserve to be in every collection. Koelreuteria paniculata, a native of China, is a hardy tree, very ornamental from its foliage as well as its flowers. There are fine specimens both in England and Ireland, yet the tree is not generally met with in pleasure-grounds. The toothache-tree, Xanthoxylum fraxineum, is a small tree or large shrub, a native of North America, hardy and ornamental both from its foliage and flowers. The same may be said of the shrubby trefoil, Ptelea trifoliata. The ailanto, Ailantus glandulosa, is a native of China, but perfectly hardy in most parts of England. It forms a stately tree of the first rank, with a straight trunk, ample head, and magnificent foliage, the leaves, which are compound, being sometimes three feet in length. In some parts of France it is planted as a timber-tree, and is found to thrive particularly well on chalky soils. The bladder-nut tree, Staphylca, L., is a hardy bush, which may be trained to a very handsome low tree, ornamental from its foliage, its white flowers, and its curious bladder-like capsules. There are two species, S. trifoliata and S. pinnata, both deserving a place in the shrubbery. The spindle-tree, Enonymus, L., is a genus of which there are several species, quite hardy, and singularly ornamental when in fruit. The common spindle-tree, E. Europaeus, and the broad-leaved spindle-tree, E. latifolius, are the handsomest hardy species of the genus, and, when trained up to single trees on a deep loamy soil, with ample space, they form in autumn, when their capsules are ripe, objects altogether unique in the arboricultural world. Though these species are commonly seen as shrubs drawn up among others, or growing in hedges, and forming bushes perhaps not more than six or eight feet in height, yet, when properly treated, they will form trees thirty feet high, as may be seen in some of the London gardens, and even as far north as Forfarshire, where the spindle-tree produces a timber much sought after by coopers. The different varieties of the common holly are so well known for the beauty of their foliage, that the reader only requires to be reminded of them. The Minorca holly, Ilex balearica, and the opake-leaved holly, I. opaca, are very handsome kinds, which ought not to be forgotten. The winter-berry, Prinos, is a deciduous shrub, a native of North America, which, like the holly, produces fine scarlet berries, and retains them through the winter. There are several species, all quite hardy, and one or more of them deserve a place in every collection. Christ’s thorn, Paliurus aculeatus, is a native of Asia, and is used as a hedge-plant in the north of Italy. It is altogether a most elegant bush or tree, there being something quite unique in its branches, bark, and thorns, which are very numerous; and in its leaves, flowers, and seeds. The buckthorn, Rhamnus, is a hardy genus of shrubs or low trees, of which there are many species; but we shall confine ourselves to those which are decidedly hardy. Rhamnus Alaternus is a well-known evergreen, of which there are varieties having broad and narrow leaves, and leaves blotched or variegated with yellow, and also with white. R. hybridus, a native of France, is a subevergreen, resembling the alaternus. R. catharticus, the purging buckthorn of Britain, and the white thorn of the modern Greeks, forms a very hardy and handsome small tree. R. alnifolius, alpinus, and frangula, are also very handsome small trees; and there are several other species which, if they can be procured, well deserve a place in the shrubbery. R. latifolius, a native of the Azores, is a very handsome kind, and quite hardy both in the gardens of London and Edinburgh. The different species of rhus are very hardy and very ornamental. R. Cotinus is a particularly interesting object when its seeds are ripe. R. typhi-na, viridiflora, and glabra, are curious from the stag’shorn appearance of the ends of the branches; and their leaves, before they drop, assume a fine yellow, rich scarlet, or dark-red hue. Sophora Japonica forms a splendid tree in the climate of London, and there is a pendulous-branched variety which is very ornamental. One property of this tree is, that in dry and warm seasons, when the leaves of most other trees become of a paler green than usual, those of this tree assume a darker hue. Virgilia lutea is a North American tree, with fine large foliage, hardy in most parts of Britain; and, in America, valued for the yellow colour of its wood. The laburnum has already been mentioned both as a useful and an ornamental tree. The purple laburnum is a hybrid between the Scotch laburnum and the Cytisus purpureus, of vigorous growth, but more curious than beautiful. Robinia viscosa is a variety of the false acacia, or locust-tree, with a glutinous bark, and flowers slightly tinged with pink. It is a beautiful object, both in foliage and when in blossom, and is as hardy as the common robinia or locust. There are a number of other varieties of Robinia pseud-acacia, and in particular the parasol-acacia, all of which are very ornamental. The roseacacia, Robinia hispida, of which there are several varieties, is highly prized for its rose-coloured flowers. The Siberian pea-tree, Caragana arborescens, and a number of other varieties or species of Caragana, are all very ornamental, and quite hardy; and the same may be said of the salt-tree, [7:17:788]Halimodendron, and of the different species of Coin-tea, or bladder-senna. The three-thorned Gleditsehia, or honey-laeust, Glcditschia, L., is a genus of which there are seven species in cultivation in British nurseries, besides varieties. Some of the Gleditschias attain the size of trees of the first rank, and others are middle-sized or small trees; but they are all deserving of culture, on account of the beauty of their foliage, and their very remarkable spines. The Kentucky coffee-tree, Gymnoeladus Canadensis, is a curious-looking object in winter; but in summer it is clothed with a magnificent foliage. It is a native of Canada, easily propagated by cuttings of the roots, and consequently hardy enough for any part of Great Britain; though, strange as it may appear, it is far from being common in collections. The Judas trees, Cereis Siliquastrum and Canadensis, are very handsome small trees, both when in leaf and in flower; the flowers have an agreeable acid, and they are used in Paris in salads, and fried in batter for fritters. The almond, the peach, the aprieot, the plum, and the cherry, in their single or comparatively wild state, and also the varieties of these species having double flowers, are fine ornamental objects in plantations or on lawns, and are quite hardy. Cerasus semperflorens and serrulata, the Allsaint, and Chinese doubleblossomed cherries, are very desirable ornamental trees. The perfumed cherry, Cerasus mahaleb, is a most valuable tree, coming early into flower, diffusing its odour in every direction, and soon afterwards becoming covered with berries, which are generally of a glossy black, but in some varieties yellow. The bird-cherry, Cerasus padus, is a native of the woods both of Scotland and Sweden, and one of the most ornamental of low trees when in flower. Its beautiful spikes of white blossoms are succeeded by black or red fruit, which is very ornamental while it remains on the tree, but when ripe is soon devoured by birds, by whom it is greedily sought after. The Cornwall bird-cherry, Cerasus padus rubra, and the pendulous branched bird-cherry, Cerasus padus bracteosa, are interesting varieties. C. Virginiana, serotina, and capollin, are species of bird-cherry resembling one another, surpassing the European bird-cherry in the smoothness and glossiness of their foliage, and equaling it in the beauty and profusion of their flowers. C. Virginiana is so hardy, and produces fruit in such abundance, that in some parts of England it may be considered as naturalized, having come up in the native copses from seeds carried thither by the birds from artificial plantations. There are about twenty other species of Cerasus, all quite hardy; and though some of them are of very bumble growth, and adapted for planting on the faces of rocks, rather than amongst other shrubs, yet they are all deserving of culture.

The genus Crataegus consists of twenty-eight species, and about double that number of varieties, each of which forms a beautiful small tree. There is not perhaps any other genus of hardy ligneous plants in which so many beautiful small trees are to be found. They are all remarkable for having an irregular, picturesque character of outline, and for assuming this character at the growth of even five or six years. They all come into flower at an early age, produce flowers profusely, and all ripen abundance of fruit. The flowers are, for the most part, white and fragrant, but in some varieties they are tinged with red and purple; and in one, the searlct hawthorn, C. oxyaeantha rosea, they are of a fine rose colour. The flowers appear at various periods from March till the middle of July; and one variety, the Glastonbury thorn, often comes into bloom at Christmas. The earliest flowering species are Crataegus purpurea and nigra, and the latest C. eordifolia and Virginica. The colour of the fruit is for the most part red, as in the common hawthorn; but in some it is yellow, as in C. Aronia; black, as in C. nigra; or greenish-yellow, as in C. Mexicana. In C. coecinea the fruit is large, and of ∙a scarlet colour. In C.

Douglasii it is of rich glossy purple-black; and in C. orientalis sanguinea, Arb. Prit., it is of an intensely deep portwine colour. Of the common hawthorn of our hedges, C. oxyacantha, L., there are no fewer than thirty recognised varieties, each of which would form a very beautiful and distinct tree. One of the varieties has the fruit white, another has double white flowers, another, C. oxyacantha phoenicea flore pleno, double red, another a fine single pink. One has black fruit, another yellow, and a third white. In one the entire tree takes the upright narrow form of a cypress, and in another the branches are pendulous, like those of the weeping willow; one has leaves like those of the oak, another leaves like those of the fern, and so on. All the species of Crataegus may be readily propagated by grafting them on the common thorn, by which means, when stocks standard high are used, they become trees fit for planting out where they are finally to remain, at the end of the third season. The species may be propagated either by grafting, by seeds, or by cuttings of the roots. Much ornament might be conferred on the country, and especially on the roads which pass through a hedged estate, if the proprietor were to allow some thorns in his hedgerows to grow to the average height of two or three feet above the top of the hedge, and at that height to bud, or graft these with some of the more tree-growing of the ornamental species. Cotoneaster frigida, affinis, acuminata, and nummularia, are Nepaul small trees of very great beauty, both on account of their foliage and their fruit; so much so, that though we have already mentioned them under the head of sub-evergreens, we have here repeated their names. Amelanehier vulgaris, Botry-apium, sanguinea, ovalis, and florida, are very beautiful low trees, which bear a profusion of white flowers early in spring, and are succeeded by brown or black berries, which, though commonly left to the birds, are not disagreeable to eat. The common medlar, and Smith’s medlar, Mespilus Smithii, Pec., Μ. grandiflora, Hort., are ornamental trees: the former is valued also for its fruit, and the latter for the profusion of white blossoms with which it is covered in April. There are a great many very ornamental species and varieties of the genus Pyrus, which is now so far extended as to include species formerly considered as belonging to Sorbus, Crataegus, Mespilus, &c. P.. nivalis, sinaica, salicifolia, claeagnifolia, and amygdaliformis, may be considered as white woolly-leaved varieties of the common wild pear, and P. sinensis as a distinct variety of the common cultivated pear. P Bollwylliana appears to be a hybrid between the apple or erab, and Pyrus Aria. P. variolosa, a native of Nepaul, is a remarkable tree, with leaves sometimes like those of the common cultivated pear, and at other times cut, like those of Pyrus spuria sambu-cifolia. Pyrus prunifolia, baceata, and Astraeanica, are crabapples with handsome blossoms and small beautiful fruit; and there are a number of sub-varieties, which may be obtained in the nurseries. Among these, the white astraean or transparent crab of Moscow, the supreme crab, and Biggs’s everlasting crab, deserve the preference. P. eoronaria, and P. angus-tifblia, are American wild apples, with sweet-scented flowers. P. spectabilis, a native of China, but quite hardy, is remarkable for its showy pink and white blossoms, which are produced in great profusion. P. Aria, the white-beam tree, and all its varieties, deserve culture, as compaet, low, or small trees; P. vestita, a native of Nepaul, is remarkable for its large woolly foliage, which dies off of a fine yellow. P. torminalis, though indigenous, is a most ornamental tree. Pyrus Sorbus, and all its different varieties, are very ornamental. Pyrus spuria, a native of Kamtschatka, forms a very beautiful little tree, with a profusion of white flowers and black fruit; and Pyrus arbutifolia, Mespilus arbutifolia, L. with its varieties, melanocarpa, floribunda, and depressa, are beautiful low shrubs, and, when grafted standard high on the-common thorn, form very ornamental objects, whether in blossom, when covered with . their fine dark -fruit, or when [7:17:789]their leaves are dying off, and have become of an intensely dark red, shaded with yellow and purple.

The common and Chinese quinces form handsome low trees; the former more particularly so when in flower and fruit, and the latter when in full leaf. The Japan quince, Cydonia Japonica (Pyrus Japonica, Z.), is well known as one of the most ornamental spring-flowering shrubs in cultivation. Hamamelis Virginica, the Wych hazel, is valuable from its beginning to flower in November, and retaining its blossoms till February or March: though rarely seen in collections, it is very hardy, and forms a very handsome small tree. The different species of dogwood are ornamental, and, with the exception of C. florida, quite hardy. C. alba sibirica has the shoots of a fine scarlet colour, and is singularly ornamental in the winter season. The common elder, Sambucus nigra, will thrive, and form a handsome low tree, in a variety of situations, where many other trees and shrubs will scarcely grow: on a mountain side, and in the coal-smoke of cities or factories. There is a very handsome variety with cut leaves, one with white fruit, and another with green fruit. S. racemosa is a native of Spain, which grows vigorously in this country. The leaves are finely cut; and the fruit, with which it is generally profusely covered, is of the most brilliant scarlet: being very little known among gardeners, it is scarcely ever seen in collections. The different species of Viburnum are hardy, and all more or less ornamental, both when in flower and in fruit. The leaves also die off of a fine yellow-red, sometimes tinged with purple. V. Lentago, pyrifolium, prunifo-lium, and nudum, when trained to a single stem, form compact-growing, neat, little trees. The common wayfaring tree, V. Lantana, and the American wayfaring tree, V. lan-tanoides, form very neat bushes. V. Opulus is well known as the Guelder rose; and the American variety, V. 0. oxycoccos, has fruit as large as the cranberry, which is used in America for the same purpose; as is the fruit of V. 0. edule, another American variety. The fly-honeysuckle, Lonicera xylosteum, and the Alpine upright honeysuckle, Lonicera alpigena, are the only two species which are sufficiently woody and large to be noticed in this selection; the other species belong to flowering shrubs. The snow-drop tree, Halesia tetraptera, is one of the hardiest of North American trees, and, when in flower, one of the most beautiful: it ripens abundance of seeds in this country, by which it is readily propagated; so much so, that in some parts of England it is, like the American bird-cherry, naturalized in the copses. It is rarely to be met with in Scotland, though few trees so well adapted for the climate of that country are so ornamental. The date-plum, Diospyros Lotus, though it ripens fruit as a standard in the climate of London, is perhaps rather tender for the northern counties; but where the climate is moderate, it forms a very beautiful small tree. The Virginian snow-flower, or fringetree, Chionanthus Virginica, is nearly as hardy as the snowdrop tree; and when planted in a moist soil, and trained to a single stem, its head is ornamental from its large, deepgreen foliage, independently of the fine, white, fringe-like flowers which are suspended from the axils of the leaves. The common purple and the common white lilacs, Syringa vulgaris, and S. vulgaris alba, are very hardy, and make very neat small trees when trained to a single stem. The common ash is the parent of several varieties which are very ornamental. One of the oldest of these is the simpleleaved ash, of which there is a variety lately discovered in Ireland, with the leaves variegated. The pendulous-branched or weeping ash is a well-known variety, as are the yellow barked and the striped barked. There are several other varieties not in our opinion worth cultivating, though from these we except F. excelsior parvifolia, F. e. p. argentia, and F. e. p. oxycarpa. The lentiscus-leaved ash, F. Lentiscifolia, is an elegant tree; and there is a pendulous variety of it, which forms by far the most graceful tree of the genus. There are several species or varieties of American ash, very ornamental in their foliage, most of them hardy in the climate of London, but few of them adapted for the northern counties. The flowering ash, Ornus Europaea, is a very handsome tree, nearly as hardy as the common ash, and it ought on no account to be omitted in ornamental plantations. Few trees have a finer effect when standing singly on a lawn. Catalpa syringaefolia is a splendid tree when in flower: it attains the height of thirty or forty feet, and sometimes ripens its seeds in the climate of London; but in the northern counties it seldom does much good. It is one of those trees which will bear an immense deal of cold in winter, provided there has been heat and bright sunshine enough in summer to ripen its wood. The tupelo tree, Nyssa, is nearly as hardy as the Diospyros Lotus, and is more beautiful than that tree in autumn, when its leaves change to an intensely deep rich scarlet. The Oleaster or wild olive, and the Hudson’s Bay olive, Elaeagnus hortensis and argentea, are handsome silvery-leaved low trees; the former, however, rather tender, and the latter rather shrubby. The sea-buckthorn is a very handsome and a very hardy willow-leaved little tree, which has the great advantage of standing the sea-breeze without injury. Hippophae salicifolia, a native of the mountains of Nepaul, is of more vigorous growth than the European sea-buckthorns, and appears to be nearly as hardy as they are. Shepherdia argentea, the Missouri silver-tree, is an elegant silvery-leaved tree, a native of North America, where it produces an edible fruit: it forms a suitable companion to Hippophae and Elaeagnus, which are also more or less silvery in their foliage. The black, the white, the red, and the tartarian mulberries, are all ornamental trees, but rather tender in the northern counties. The paper mulberry, Broussonetia papyrifera, is an interesting object, but more tender than the common mulberry. Madura auran-tiaca, the American bow-wood, or Osage orange, is a tree of very vigorous growth in the climate of London; but as it continues growing till late in the season, its wood is often not ripened so far as the points of the shoots, and the tree is therefore probably unfit for those parts of the island where the atmosphere is almost constantly charged with fog. The elm comprises many ornamental species and varieties. Of the English or narrow-leaved elm, those which we prefer are U. campestris viminalis, U. c. foliis variegatis, and U. c. virens. U. c. planifolia, and U. c. chinensis, are very beautiful as elms, but difficult to procure. Ulmus efiùsa is, in our opinion, by far the handsomest species of the European elms when it is in a young state; but it does not grow up to a handsome tree. The most beautiful variety of Scotch elm is the weeping elm, Ulmus montana pendula, which is remarkable for the vigour of its growth, and the picturesque manner in which its branches are thrown about. There are some American elms which are tolerably hardy in the climate of London, but which cannot be recommended for colder districts. Planera Richardi is an Asiatic tree, and attains the first rank even in the climate of London, where it sometimes ripens seeds; it deserves a place along with the elms, and along with the southern and eastern nettle-trees, Celtis australis and Tour-nefortii. The common walnut-tree, Juglans regia, though it becomes a tree of the first rank in the climate of London, and is cultivated for its fruit both there and in Devonshire, yet in the north has generally the points of its young shoots blackened by the spring frosts. Of the willow there are a great many species and varieties, all of which are highly ornamental when in flower. Of these we may recommend the almond-leaved willow, S. amygdalina; the sweet-scented bay-leaved willow, S. pentandra; the weeping willow, S. Babylonica; the golden willow, S. vitellina; and the purple-barked willow, S. atropurpurea. The poplar[7:17:790] genus contains several ornamental species. The first we shall mention is Populus tremula grandidentata, Arb. Brit., the North American large aspen, of which there is a pendulous branched variety. P. heterophylla is an American poplar, little known and rarely met with in British nurseries. The balsam poplar, P. balsamifera, is one of the earliest trees, which sends out its leaves in spring; and it and the Lonicera Tatarica, in the climate of London, are found clothed with leaves a week or a fortnight sooner than any other tree or shrub whatever. The leaves of the balsam poplar, when they first come out, are of a rich yellow, and they perfume the air with their fragrance for some distance around; as the summer advances, they become darker, till in the autumn they are of a black or bluish green. It may give some idea of the extreme hardiness of this tree to mention, that Captain Franklin found it as far north as the Great Slave Lake; and that the greatest part of the drift-timber which he observed on the shores of the Arctic Sea was of this species. It is one of those poplars that send up suckers, and it is consequently readily propagated by cuttings of the roots. It prefers a moist soil, and though the Cree name for this species means ugly poplar, yet when full grown on such a soil, it forms a very massive round-headed tree, which at a distance might be mistaken for an oak or a chestnut, as is proved by two fine specimens in the grounds at Syon. The Ontario poplar, P. candicans, bears a close general resemblance to the balsam poplar; it has the rigid fastigiate habit of that tree, the same habit of sending out its foliage before all other poplars, its fine fragrance, and its property of throwing up suckers from the roots; but it differs from the balsam poplar in having very large heart-shaped leaves. It is rather more difficult to propagate than the balsam poplar, and, in British nurseries, is commonly raised from layers. The genus Alnus, the alder, contains some very ornamental trees. A. glutinosa laciniata has finely-cut foliage, and, what is remarkable, is in general a more free-growing tree than the species. A. cordifolia is a native of Calabria, and by far the handsomest species of the genus. We have already mentioned it as probably fit to be grown for its timber. A. incana, the hoary-leaved alder, is a very handsome tree, and has the advantage of preferring dry soil. A. oblongata, serrulata, undulata, and viridis, arc low trees or large shrubs, quite hardy, and deserving of introduction into collections. The birch is a genus of which the greater number of species are natives of North America; and, though they are valuable timber-trees there, none of them in this country have yet proved anything more than ornamental. The finest American species is B. nigra, distinguished by the beautiful paper-white of its bark, which cracks, separates into thin laminae, and rolls up, even when the tree is young and only two or three inches in diameter. B. populifolia is a handsome species, very much resembling the common birch, and in our opinion only a variety of it, as are B. pubescens, urticifolia, pontica, Darlecarlica, and others. There is a cut-leaved, pendulous variety of the common birch, which is very ornamental. The paper-birch, B. papyracea, is a fine tree; as are B.glandulosa and B. Däurica. B. fruticoa, pumila, and nana, are shrubs.

Of oaks there are upwards of forty species introduced into British gardens; the greater number of them, with many varieties, being purchasable in British nurseries. All these, with the exception of the two varieties of the common oak and the Turkey oak, may be considered as solely or principally ornamental. Of the common oak, Q. pedunculata, there are three varieties, very distinctly marked, viz. the cypress oak, Q. p. fastigiata; the weeping oak, Q. p. pendula; and the cut-leaved oak, Q. p. heterophylla. These three varieties often ripen acorns, and of the plants raised from them a number are found to have the same habit as the parent. There are several varieties of Q. ses-

siliflora, which differ in the size of the acorns, in the size of the leaves, in the greater or lesser degree in which these are cut, and in the presence or absence of pubescence; none of these varieties, however, have yet been propagated by the nurseryman, excepting Q. s. pubescens. The Py-renaean oak, Q. Pyrenaica, is a very handsome and distinct species, of low growth. Q. Apennina is also a low tree. Q. Esculus, the Italian oak, is a tree under the middle size, which thrives well, and ripens its acorns in the climate of London: there are fine specimens at Whitton Park. Of the Turkey oak, Quercus Cerris, there are ten or twelve very distinct varieties. The first of these is the pendulous variety, the next the Austrian, then the Ragnal, the Fulham, and the Lucombe. Of the latter there are five very distinct sub-varieties, all sub-evergreen, and all well deserving of culture wherever the common Turkey oak will thrive. Quercus Aegiĭops, the Velonia oak, thrives in the climate of London; but is probably too tender for the northern counties. The American oaks, which are deciduous, may be classed as the white, red, black, and willow oaks. The white oak best worth cultivating in Britain as an ornamental tree is Q. alba; but Q. olivaeformis and macrocarpa are remarkable for their fruit, and Q. obtusifolia and lyrata for their leaves. The chestnut oak, Q. Prinus, and its several varieties, also deserve culture: the leaves of these oaks resemble those of the sweet chestnut, and the species is to the other deciduous American oaks what Q. sessiliflora is to the deciduous oaks of Europe. Q. alba bears the closest resemblance to Q. pedunculata, and may be considered as being the American form of that species. All the red oaks are beautiful in the form and colour of their foliage; and some of them attain the size of timber-trees in Britain, though their wood is of little value either here or in America. Q. rubra, and coccinea, and tinctoria (the Quercitron), are perhaps the most ornamental; and Q. palustris is the hardiest, the most rapid growing, and the handsomest in point of general form. The black American oaks are all remarkable trees. The black-jack oak, Q. nigra, L., is the most extraordinary species, from the very singular form of its leaves; and next to it is Q. aquatica. Q. illicifolia, heterophylla, and agrifolia, belong to this division. The willow oaks, Q. Phellos, imbricata, and laurifolia, have entire leaves, which die oft* without changing colour; and this group may be considered the least ornamental of the American oaks.

The American hornbeam, Carpinus Americana, and the common and Virginian hop hornbeams, Ostyra vulgaris and Virginica, deserve a place in collections, more especially the hop hornbeams, from the singular appearance of their fruit. Of the common hazel there are some ornamental varieties, such as that with purple leaves, and another with cut leaves. The Constantinople hazel, Corylus Colurna, forms a very handsome middle-sized tree; and C. rostrata and Americana are hardy, and well deserving a place in ornamental plantations. The oriental and occidental planes are highly ornamental trees of the first rank, and Platanus Orientalis accrifolia, Arb. Brit., and P. 0. cuneata, Arb. Brit., are fine varieties, the latter forming a curiously-twisted low tree. The Liquidambar is a splendid’tree, remarkable for the beauty of its foliage and its refreshing fragrance. Liquidambar imberbe is a small tree, also very ornamental. The Ginkgo or maidenhair tree, Salisburia adiantifolia, Sm,, is remarkable for the singularity of its foliage: ' it is a native of China, but is quite hardy in most parts of Britain; and it is propagated without difficulty by cuttings made in autumn. Of the larch there are some species and several varieties, which are chiefly ornamental; those best deserving of culture are L. Europaea pendula, L. Americana pendula, and L. Americana rubra. The deciduous cypress is rather tender in the northern parts of the island; but in the climate of London, when planted where its roots are within reach of water, it forms a magnificent tree of the first rank.
[7:17:791]

Ill·— The Nursery Culture of Trees.

We have now gone through the whole of the hardy trees and shrubs of Britain, and have indicated those which we think best deserving of culture, where the objects are either timber-produce or general effect, and where no extraordinary care is proposed to be bestowed on the soil. The reader cannot fail to be surprised at the very small number of species which merit to be planted for the sake of their timber, and at the great number which we have enumerated as ornamental. That number would have been more than doubled had we included the flowering shrubs, and such foreign trees and shrubs as will only thrive in the southern parts of the island; but we have confined ourselves as,much as possible to those which will thrive both in the climate of London and in that of Edinburgh. It must be recollected that all the ornamental trees produce timber of some sort; and some of them, such as the box, crab, common maple, &c., timber of considerable value. Every ornamental tree, therefore, may be considered a useful tree, even with respect to the wood which it produces; though, from the length of time it takes to produce that wood, it may not be a profitable tree to cultivate for that purpose. Having treated on the trees worth cultivating, we shall now enter on the subject of their cultivation.

The cultivation of trees and shrubs includes their propagation and rearing in the nursery, and their culture and management in plantations.

Nursery Culture. — A nursery is any plot of ground devoted to the propagation and rearing of trees and shrubs. To be perfect, it ought to contain the principal kinds of soil in which trees and shrubs grow, and to possess different climates, according to the countries of which the plants are natives; but as these requisites cannot be always obtained, particularly with respect to climate, all that art can do is to make the nearest approach to them that circumstances will admit. It may be laid down as a general principle, that all seeds will germinate, and all plants grow, in any kind of soil whatever, provided it contain some vegetable matter, be in a state of minute division, and be retentive, to a certain extent, of water. All plants, therefore, may be reared in a nursery containing only one kind of soil; but in such a nursery all will not be equally well reared; for some plants, such as all those which have hair-like roots (as the ericaceae, including the heaths, rhododendrons, arbutuses, &c.), and in general all that are called peat-earth plants, will only thrive in a peaty-soil; or a soil composed of a mixture of very fine sand, and thoroughly decomposed leaves, or woody matter. Other plants, such as all those which attain a large size, and have strong tap-roots, will only thrive in deep loams or in deep fertile sands, though they will grow for a time very well in peat. A nursery, therefore, that contains the three leading soils of sand, loam, and peat, will suffice for all the purposes for which the most extensive nursery can be required; and, for raising such trees and shrubs as have been treated of in this article, a piece of ground containing sandy loam in one place, and clayey loam in another, or even sandy loam throughout, will be quite sufficient, as far as regards soil. With respect to climate, all the deficiencies which can occur in Britain may be made up by glazed frames, in which the more tender kinds can be raised; and in which those which are grown in pots can be kept through the winter. A nursery may be considered in two points of view: with reference to the nurserymen, and with reference to the climate and soil where the trees are finally to be planted. As matters stand at present, it is the interest of the nurseryman to have his nursery in a fine climate, and in deep, fertile soil, in order that he may raise large vigorous plants in the shortest possible period: but it is the interest of the purchaser to have the plants reared in a climate and soil inferior to that into which they are to be transplanted; because, when this is done, instead of the plants receiving a check from the operation of transplanting, as is usually the case, they will be improved by it. It is the interest of the nurseryman to have his nursery trenched and manured to the depth of two or three feet; in order that it may contain abundance of nourishment, and be retentive of moisture during the summer season, so as to cause the plants to produce long and vigorous shoots. On the other hand, it is the interest of the purchaser that the soil should not be cultivated to more than eight or ten inches in depth, in order that the nourishment and the moisture, and consequently the roots, may be concentrated in a very limited space; so that, when the plants are taken up, the whole of the roots may be taken up with them, which, where the ground has been trenched, is impossible, from the great depth to which they will have penetrated. It is for the interest of the nurseryman that the summer should be moist, in order that the shoots produced may be long and strong; but it is for the interest of the purchaser that the summer should be dry, in order that the shoots may be short, and thoroughly ripened; and that the roots should cease to grow early in the autumn, in order that their spongioles, having had time to harden, which they cannot do till they have ceased elongating, may receive the less injury when the plants are taken up. In short, it is the interest of the purchaser to concentrate all the forces of the plant within such limits as he can thoroughly command, that is, can take up and carry away. The advantages of then sowing and planting to the planter, therefore, are obvious, though the reverse is for the inte- rest of the nurseryman; as by thick planting the plants are drawn up taller and straighter, and a greater number will grow on a given surface. We are fully aware of the arguments which are opposed to this doctrine by nurserymen; viz. that the stronger a plant is, and the greater the number of its fibrous roots, the more likely will it be to succeed after being transplanted to a new situation; and that this strength of shoot, and abundance of fibrous roots, can only be produced in deep, rich soil. But we deny that this vigorous appearance in the shoots of plants is strength; and assert that, so far from a deep soil being favourable to the production of fibrous roots, it is directly the reverse. The strength of a plant, and its suitableness for being removed from one situation to another, and for growing vigorously after it is removed, consists in all its parts having arrived at maturity, in the thorough ripening of its wood, and in the completely dormant state of its fibrous roots; and these requisites, we assert, can only be obtained by concentrating the nourishment contained in the soil into a limited space, by the soil being compact, and by no more moisture being admitted to the roots than what is absolutely necessary to complete the growth of the season in sufficient time to allow of the thorough ripening of the young wood. If by any mode of culture these requisites can be obtained, together with the long and thick shoots which are produced by growing the plants in deep, rich soil, so much the better; but we contend, that, in the climate of Britain, this is impossible. If the purchasers of plants in nurseries will observe what takes place in the case of layers, as in those of the elm, the lime, the platanus, the white poplar, the vine, &c. they will see the justice of our statement. Such layers made in spring have generally at the end of the season shoots of three or more feet in length, which have continued growing till they were checked by frost; the consequence of which is, that neither the wood nor the fibrous shoots have ripened. The first year after removal, such plants make scarcely any growth; and if they survive the first yean it requires two or three years more before they are firmly established. Nearly the same thing may be said of almost all one-year grafted or budded fruit-trees, which, hav [7:17:792]ing seldom ripened their wood thoroughly, from being planted in deeply trenched rich soil, and half of their roots having been left in the ground after they are taken up, are consequently obliged to be cut in when planted. These considerations show, as a general principle, the advantage of growing all plants that are to be transplanted, in such a manner as that they may thoroughly ripen their wood and roots, and so that the whole of the roots may be taken up with the plant. On a large scale, the only mode of effecting this is by having the soil shallow and rich, but not too moist. On a small scale, the same end is attained in a very complete manner by growing the plants in pets; and, were it not for the expense, this would be the best mode of growing all nursery articles. The plants, however, should not be kept too long in pots, because, when so treated, many species, after a time, acquire a stunted habit, and the roots, when the tree is transplanted, instead of being in a state to allow of their being unwound from the ball, and stretched out in lines radiating in every direction from the stool, are so long and slender, and the circulation through them is so languid, that they require to be cut off or shortened. In general, it may be observed, that a weak plant, with the wood and roots thoroughly ripened, is much more likely to thrive when transplanted, than a strong one from which a great part of the roots have been cut oft'; and hence, of two young Huntingdon elms, budded on the Scotch elm, one of which had been grown in a pot, and had its leading shoot only two feet long, and another which had been grown in the free soil, and had its leading shoot five or six feet long, as is often the case—the former, when transplanted where it was finally to remain, would far sooner attain the height of twenty or thirty feet than the latter. We do not expect that all commercial nurserymen will subscribe to these opinions, but private gentlemen who raise their own trees will find it their interest to attend to them. Hence those who plant in mountainous districts will always find it better to have their nurseries on the sides of the mountains than in the valleys.

Propagation. — Trees, like other plants, are chiefly propagated by seeds; but they are also increased by cuttings, layers, budding, and grafting. The timber-trees of all countries are raised from seeds, with the exception of a very few, such as the poplar and the willow, which are raised from cuttings; and some species of elms, limes, and a few others, which are raised from layers, or by grafting. The greater number of ornamental trees and shrubs are raised by some of these artificial methods; because in this country they seldom ripen seeds, and because varieties are always perpetuated by artificial modes. Thi s, all the American oaks are, or may be, grafted on the common British oak. Most of the foreign accrs and birches are raised by layers, most of the ornamental thorns by budding and grafting, and almost all the ornamental willows and poplars by cuttings. All plants which do not ripen seeds readily are propagated by some of these artificial modes; and that mode is preferred by the nurseryman, which, experience has proved, will produce the largest and most vigorous-looking plants in the shortest time. Thus, though more suitable plants for the planter would be produced by raising the platanus and the white poplar from cuttings, because in that case nature would adjust the tops to the power of the roots; yet,, as much larger plants are produced by layers, that mode is everywhere preferred in the commercial nurseries. The lime-tree ripens its seeds in this country, and also the English elm; büt large plants are much more rapidly procured in the first case by layers, and in the second by grafting. We do not say that in every case the mode by which the largest plants are most rapidly produced should give way to the slower mode; but merely that, in most cases, it would be advantageous to the purchaser that the slower mode should be adopted.

According to some writers, plants which are raised from cuttings, or by any other mode than by seeds, are of less durability than seminal plants; but though this may be true, or appear so, in a few instances, it can never be adopted as a general principle; since, from all that we are taught by physiology, a bud contains as perfect an embryo of a plant as a seed: the only difference being, that the bud is more powerfully imbued with the peculiarities of the individual which produced it than the seed is. This doctrine is confirmed by experience; since the poplar, the willow, the vine, &c., have been propagated by cuttings from time immemorial, and, for any thing that is known to the contrary, possess respectively the same properties now that they did in the days of the Romans.

Propagating by Seeds. — The seeds should be collected from the handsomest individuals of the species, when they are quite mature; and they should either be sown immediately, or preserved in a place where they will undergo few changes in regard to heat or moisture, till the proper sowing season, which, in almost every case, will be the following spring. Nature, it may be observed, sows all her seeds soon after they are fully matured; that is, they drop from the tree upon the ground in autumn, or the beginning of winter, or, in the case of some trees, such as the pines and firs, not till the following spring; but as, when seeds are thus left to chance, the greater part of them are destroyed by vermin, by being placed in a condition not favourable for germination, or by imperfect or premature germination, only a moderate number of them produce plants. It is the business of art, therefore, to study what is favourable and unfavourable in nature’s mode of sowing seeds, and to imitate oply the former. The result of this study is, that by far the greater number of seeds may be kept with advantage from the time they ripen, till early in the following spring, that is, till February or March, and then be committed to the soil. There are a few exceptions, as in the case of poplar and willow seeds, which ripen early, and which, when sown immediately that they drop from the tree, often come up in the course of a few weeks; whereas, if they are kept till the following spring, the greater number do not come up at all; and also in the case of seeds which lie two years in the ground before coming up, such as those of the hawthorn, the holly, &c. and which may be kept till the second spring after being ripened before they are sown. In order to show the treatment required for the seeds of different kinds of trees, and the plants raised from them in the nurseries, it will be convenient to throw them into groups; and these may be as follow: the pine and fir tribe; the trees producing nuts, acorns, masts, and keys; trees producing pomes with kernels, berries with stones, berries in capsules, small seeds, leguminous seeds, and cottony or papery seeds.

The seeds of the pine and fir tribe ripen from October till January, and if the cones are allowed to remain on the tree throughout the winter, the seeds do not in general drop out till the following April or May; soon after which, such of them as drop into a favourable soil, where there is a certain degree of moisture and shade, come up in five or six weeks. The nurseryman collects the cones of each species immediately after they are ripe (which, with the pinaster, and a few others, is as early as the month of October), and he lays them by in a dry place till he has .leisure to extract the seeds. This he does by exposing the cones to the heat of the sun under a glass case, by which the heat is retained, and raised to a higher degree than it would be in the open air; or he subjects them to artificial heat before an open fire, or on a kiln. The seeds, when taken out, are sown in April, in soil dug over, and rendered fine by raking; and over them is laid a covering of soil, which, in general, need not be deeper than the thickness of the seed to be covered, where the soil is loamy; [7:17:793]but it may be twice that thickness where the soil is a coarse sand. In order to retain a uniform degree of moisture on the surface, the beds, after the sowing is completed, should be shaded from the sun, by covering them slightly with the branches of trees, and especially with those of evergreens, such as the spruce fir. In cold moist climates, such as that of Aberdeen, this shading may be dispensed with; but in the climate of London it is, in most seasons, essentially necessary, and may be effected by hoops and mats, by fronds of fern, by straw, or by pea haulm. For greater convenience, the seeds are generally sown in beds, a slight excavation being made in the beds by drawing some of the earth to the sides; and in order that the seeds may be evenly deposited on a somewhat firm surface, the bottom of this excavation is rolled with a light roller. After the seeds are distributed over the beds, at such distances as that the plants, after they have come up, and have grown to the end of the season, may not touch each other, the beds are again rolled, and afterwards the covering of earth is thrown over them which was drawn off before rolling and sowing. It may be observed here, that the rolling in of the seeds, by bringing them in close contact with comparatively firm soil, renders a much thinner covering of earth necessary than if the seeds had been sown on a loose surface. It is also more favourable to the vegetation of the seeds; it being found that close contact with the soil, both in the case of seeds, and the spongioles of the roots, is a powerful stimulus to vegetation. Some of the more tender species of pines and firs, such as the stone pine, the cedar of Lebanon, the cypress, &c. are commonly sown in pots, or in flat earthen pans, for the convenience of making them germinate under glass, and in order to facilitate future transplantation; but the process of preparation, sowing, and covering, is exactly the same as when the seeds are raised in beds. The plants, after they have come up, require nothing but the usual routine culture of the nursery for two summers; at the end of which period they should be taken up, and, if possible, transplanted where they are finally to remain; but as this cannot always be done, the next best practice is to plant them in the nursery, either in lines, which is the most convenient mode, or scattered over beds; in either case keeping the plants so far apart that there may be a clear space round each plant, of from three to six inches, according to its height and the length of its leaves. Thus, for the Scotch pine and the spruce fir, which grow slowly when young, and have comparatively short leaves, three inches will be sufficient; whilst for the larch, which grows rapidly the second year, and for the pinaster, which has long leaves, six inches will be required. Here the plants may remain another two years, and afterwards be transplanted on the same principle; unless they are in the mean time removed to where they are finally to remain. Unless this has been the case, they will have little chance of doing good as timber-trees; for experience has proved, that after two years’ growth, or at most four years’, all the pine and fir timber are materially checked by transplanting; and that this check is of a kind which cannot, like that given to broad-leaved trees, in a similar case, be counteracted by cutting them down to the ground; but, on the contrary, remains for many years, and materially affects the future growth and habit of the tree.

Trees bearing Nuts, Acorns, Masts, Kegs, l↑x- .These, on British timber-trees, ripen from October to December. The greater part of oaks ripen their acorns in November; but the beech, the horse-chestnut, the walnut, and the hazel, ripen their mast and nuts in October; and most of the sycamores and maples their keys in September. All these seeds ought to be gathered as soon as they are ripe; because, as they form an important part of the food of wild animals, the best are liable to be picked up by them as soon as they drop. They may either be sown immediately or kept till February, as in neither case will they come up till April or May. They should be sown in a sandy loam, in drills, the seeds being deposited at such a distance from each other, that the leaves of the plants springing from them may not touch at the end of the first season; they should be trodden into the drill with the foot, or pressed down with the back of a wooden rake; and they may be covered to the depth of twice or thrice the thickness of the seed. The reason why drills are recommended for this description of tree-seeds is, that in the intervals between the rows, a spade may be inserted obliquely, so as to cut through the tap-roots of the plant, and force it to throw out lateral roots. This operation is commonly performed early in the spring of the second year: it does not prevent a second tap-root being formed from the mutilated extremity of the first; but it throws a greater proportion of the energies of the plant into the lateral roots, which, by increasing these and their fibres, renders the tree better adapted for transplanting. At the end of the second year, plants so treated may be taken up, and either planted where they are finally to remain; or, their tap-roots being shortened, they may be transplanted into nursery lines, at distances adjusted according to the principles laid down for transplanting the pine and fir tribe. In this situation they may remain two years longer, and then be taken up and again replanted in the nursery; because all broad-leaved tap-rooted trees differ from needleleaved trees in this important particular, that the larger and stronger they are, up to a certain point, before they are removed from the nursery, and planted where they are finally to remain, the more vigorously will they grow there. The point or limit to the size which they may be allowed to attain in the nursery must be regulated by the condition of the soil into which they are to be transplanted, relatively to moisture. If this be abundant, so as to supply all the fibrils with water during the first summer, even if the removed plant has a stem an inch in diameter, so much the better; it being clearly understood that it has been transplanted in the nursery every two years, and is consequently abundantly supplied with fibrous roots, and has all its wood perfectly ripe. If, on the other hand, the soil into which the plant is to be transplanted is naturally dry, and perhaps also thin and poor, the plants should be removed from the nursery thither at the end of the second year. The reason is sufficiently obvious; such plants, being of small size, have few leaves to exhale moisture, and before they grow large they will have adjusted their roots and annual growths to the locality.

Trees producing Pomes with Kernels. — This class includes the genera Pyrus, Cydonia,Amelanchier, Cotoneaster, Viburnum, &c. The fruits of the different species of these genera ripen at various periods from September to November. They should be gathered when ripe, and each kind should be mixed with sand, and laid up in a heap, in order to rot away the pulp. This heap may be turned over several times in the course of the winter; and in the month of February it may be sifted, and the seeds separated from it, and sown in beds, exactly in the same manner as is done with the seeds of the pine and fir tribe. After the plants have been two years in the seed-bed, they may be transplanted into nursery lines, on the same general principles as already described.

Berries lιαving Stones. — This class includes the genera Crataegus, Ilex, Taxus, Prunus, Cerasus, Rhamnus, and some others. The fruit ripens from August (as is the case with some species of Crataegus) to December. It should be gathered as soon as it is thoroughly ripe; and after having been mixed with sand or sandy soil, the mixture should be laid up in moderate-sized heaps, exposed to the weather, and turned over frequently for two years, after which it may be taken, along with the sand, and sown in beds; and when the plants come up, and have grown two [7:17:794]years, they may be transplanted, and treated like the others; In general, all the plants belonging to this class, whichever way the seeds may be treated, whether they are sown immediately that they are ripe, or kept in a rotheap two summers, will not come up till the spring of the third year; but there are some positive and some accidental exceptions. Amongst the former are the yew, the berries of which generally come up at the end of the first year, and the wild cherry, which, if sown in July, immediately after the fruit is ripe, will come up the following spring; whereas, if kept till August before it is sown, it will not come up for two years. As casual exceptions, we may mention that the holly and hawthorn, when the berries are macerated in water as soon as they are gathered, and sown immediately afterwards, will, in some seasons, come up the following spring in considerable numbers; though the same treatment in other seasons, in the same nursery, will not be attended with the same results.

Perries and Capsules having small Seeds. — This class includes the elders, the privet, the spindle-tree, the barberries, and some others. The fruit may be treated like the pomes; and great care should be taken, after it is rotten, either that the seeds are completely separated from the sand before they are sown, or that the sand and seed, when sown together, should be so distributed over the bed as that the plants may come up at regular distances, and sufficiently far apart. The covering of soil should be very thin, more especially if the seeds are rolled in; and the beds should be shaded by branches or matting till the plants are fairly above ground. At the end of the second season they may be transplanted into nursery lines as before.

Leguminous Seeds. — These include the genera Cytisus, Robinia, Gleditschia, Caragana, &c. The pods generally ripen in September or October; but some of them, such as the Gleditschia, not till November or December. The seeds may be kept in the pods till February, and then taken out and sown in beds, on the principles before laid down. At the end of two years the young trees may be transplanted as before.

Cottony, Papery, Feathery, and other soft Seeds. — These include the genera Populus, Salix, Alnus, Betula, Ulmus, &c. The seeds ripen from May to November; all the poplars ripen their seeds in May; all the willows and elms in June; the alders in November; and the birches in October. The seed of the alder and the birch may be kept in a cool, dry, airy situation till the following spring, or it may be sown immediately after it is gathered. In either case it comes up in the May or June following; but it is preferable that the seeds of the elm. the poplar, and the willow, should be sown immediately, because in that ease they are much more certain of coming up. Many of these seeds will come up the same autumn, and the remainder the following April and May. The seeds may be dried and preserved in bags for a year; but in this case the greater part of those of the poplars and willows will not vegetate. The reason may be, that the seeds, when preserved, are kept too warm; which must necessarily deprive them of their moisture, through the absorption of the cottony substance with which they are enveloped. Poplar and willow seeds require to be sown on a surface rendered quite even, and slightly firm, by rolling. Afterwards the seeds should be evenly distributed over it, and they should be covered with very light, sandy soil, or peat or vegetable mould, if either can be procured, no thicker than barely to conceal the seed from the eye. After this the beds should be watered, and effectually shaded, by being hooped over and matted; and they should be kept in a uniform state of moisture, by occasional supplies of water, when the plants make their appearance. Of all the seedling trees raised in British nurseries, none come up and grow with so much vigour, the first year, as the common broad-Ieaved elm; and, therefore, the seeds of this tree require to be placed at a greater distance from each other in the seed-bed than those of any other kind. I he seeds of the elm also keep much better till the following spring than those of the poplar and willow^ and they are generally so kept by Scotch nurserymen.

IV.— The Culture of Trees in the Plantations. The Formation and Management of Plantations.

Whether plantations of forest-trees should be sown or planted, is a question which has been agitated and discussed by different writers. It is readily allowed, that sowing is the natural mode; but it is the business of art to improve upon nature, and to attain the same ends which she dces, by more definite means. If this general principle be correct, it affords at once a decisive answer as to the respective eligibility of sowing or planting; unless, indeed, it can be shown, which some have attempted to do, that the timber of transplanted trees is never so valuable as that of sown ones. The only reason alleged for this is, that the transplanted trees have lost their tap-roots; and although a more frivolous one could hardly be imagined, yet it has been maintained by a number of writers, and is still insisted on by a few. On examining the roots of full-grown trees, however, either in natural forests or artificial plantations, no tap-root is ever found; on the contrary, those roots which proceed either directly or obliquely downwards from the base of the trunk, are uniformly found much smaller than those which proceed from the base of the trunk horizontally, at a few inches distance under the surface of the ground. The tap-root, therefore, is chiefly of use to the tree whilst in a young state; and if we trace a seedling oak through the first ten years of its progress, we shall find that, in the first year, the tap-root is larger in proportion to the part of the plant above ground, than it is in any succeeding year; and that as the top of the tree and the lateral roots increase in size, the tap-root ceases to increase, till at last, even at so short a period as ten or twelve years’ growth, it is found to be the smallest of all the main roots of the tree. We assume it, therefore, as agreed on by the most intelligent planters, that a transplanted tree, other circumstances being the same, is in all respects as good as a seedling one. Hence we conclude, that all artificial plantations ought to be made by planting the trees, and for a similar reason we would plant these in rows at regular distances; and, in short, treat them, as far as is practicable, like a crop of herbaceous vegetables, when reared in the kitchen-garden or in the field. We would prepare the soil, and even manure it for the trees, with as great care as we would for a crop of turnips or cabbages; and we would stir the surface afterwards for two or three years, till it began to be covered with the branches of the trees; in which state we should leave it during the whole period of the growth of the plantation, only taking care to remove large weeds. W x e admit, however, that this kind of tree culture can only take place with advantage on a tolerably even surface, and where the soil is of the same nature throughout; but we think it right to lay it down as a general principle of guidance, in so far as it can be followed, for planters in all other soils and situations. With the exception of the ground destined for ornamental plantations about country houses, the great majority of cases in which plantations are to be formed with a view to profit must necessarily be on hilly and irregular surfaces; and where there is probably a considerable variety of soil, even in a very limited space. The only preparation that in cases of this kind can be given, is under-draining; for to dig or trench the surface would render it liable to he washed away by heavy rains and thawing snow. Plantations under such circumstances must be formed by digging pits for each particular tree, and by making use of such [7:17:795]kinds as are thought to be best adapted to the particular soil and situation. This will frequently occasion the use of a considerable variety of trees in the same plantation; but the effect will be as much more interesting in point of beauty, as the result will be advantageous in point of timber produce. We have already stated, that needle-leaved trees should, if possible, be transplanted when they are not older than two years; but that broad-leaved trees may be transplanted at four, six, eight, or ten years’ growth; provided they have been removed every two years in the nursery, and that the soil in which they are placed is sufficiently deep and moist to bring all the fibrous roots into full action the first summer. In the planting of irregular surfaces, which cannot be done by digging, when strong plants of this kind are used they overcome the natural herbage immediately; and, if carefully planted, not one in a score will fail. Smaller plants, on the other hand, are apt to be choked by the grass or herbage, and to have their leaves and young shoots injured by the insects which never fail to abound in such situations. When such surfaces have naturally a very dry soil and subsoil, plants with such a mass of roots as those which we have mentioned cannot subsist on them the first year; and therefore smaller plants, or such as have been only once transplanted, are preferable.

Notwithstanding these arguments in favour of planting instead of sowing as a general practice, there are circumstances under which sowing is either the preferable, or perhaps the only mode, that can be adopted. In every case of making plantations of the pinaster, or of the cedar of Lebanon, unless we could procure a sufficient number of plants of two years old in pots, we should prefer sowing a patch of seeds in every place where a plant was intended finally to remain. Three seeds in a patch would be sufficient; and if more than one came up, the rest should be removed the second or third year. In cases of this kind the plants require to be looked over two or three times every year, to prevent the surrounding herbage from choking them. When steep rocky cliffs, or the sides of hills, consisting of loose naked stones, are to be covered with wood, then sowing is the only mode that can be resorted to. The kind of rock having been ascertained, in order to discover the nature of the debris or soil collected in its clefts, or under the loose stones, the kinds of seeds to be sown may be selected accordingly. Where the soil is good, acorns, ash-keys, maple and sycamore keys, and beech mast, may be introduced; but where it is poor, the safer mode will be to sow seeds of the Scotch pine, the larch, the birch, the mountain ash, the white-beam tree, and the elder. Where there is no visible soil, each seed, or two or three seeds, may be enveloped in a composition of common green moss, cow-dung, and loam, and these balls being deposited in clefts or crevices, or among loose stones, and left to be acted upon by the rain, will swell and burst, and the seeds which they contained will vegetate, and find nourishment in the fragments of the ball in which they were enveloped. When the object is to cover drift sand with wood, the practice followed in the downs or landes of Bordeaux may be adopted, with suitable variations. A zone of the downs, or sandy surface, on that side from which the prevalent winds blow, is first to be sheltered by a fence of boards three or four feet in height. This will protect a zone of twenty or thirty feet in width; that is, it will prevent the drifting sands from covering this space to any great thickness. On this zone the seeds of broom, as being a plant that will grow on the poorest soil, are to be sown; and, among these, the seeds of the tree which is considered the most suitable for the particular situation. Near the sea this will generally be found to be the pinaster; but in the interior of the country, where the sands are not deep, perhaps the birch or the Scotch pine may be found eligible.

Two of the most important points connected with the formation of plantations, are the distance at which the trees ought to be planted from each other, and the introduction or non-introduction among them of nurse-trees. When both these points were first settled by professional planters, the important uses of the leaves of plants were not at all understood by practical men. Hence they gave directions for planting the trees at such distances as that they might draw up one another; without considering the loss of the leaves on the sides of each plant which this drawing up will produce. As the strength of every plant depends on the number of its leaves, and on the full exposure of these to the light, it follows that the strongest young trees will be those which are clothed with branches and leaves from the ground upwards, and which have their leaves fully exposed on every side to the perpendicular light. In regard to the distance from each other at which trees can be planted in a plantation, we should say, begin by planting at a greater or less distance, according to the size of the plants and the nature of the soil and situation; but do not neglect to cut down, or thin out, the moment the lower branches of the plants interfere with one another. Continue this practice year after year, till the lower branches begin to show symptoms of decay at their extremities; when, instead of thinning out the trees, the process of pruning them may be commenced. The lower tier of branches may then be cut off close to the stem, it being understood that such pruning shall take place before the branches are more than an inch in diameter at the point where they join the stem, even if the extremities of the branches have not begun to decay. The trees may then be left to grow, either till another tier of branches begins to show symptoms of decay, when, of course, that tier must be cut off immediately; or till the points of the healthy branches interfere with those of the healthy branches of the surrounding trees, in which case thinning must be resorted to as before. In this way the process of thinning and pruning ought to go hand in hand, till the trees have attained their average height; by which time the different species will be found standing at distances differing according to the height of each tree and the nature of its branches. Thus those trees which will be found standing closest together when full grown, will be the pine and fir tribe; because in them the branches never attain a timber size, and the lower tiers begin to decay at their extremities sooner than in any other trees. On the other hand, the oak has more widely-spreading and durable branches than any of the other broad-leaved trees; and hence, when plantations of this tree are fully grown, the individuals will be found at a greater distance apart than those of any other species of broad-leaved tree whatever. What this distance will be must depend on the soil and situation; because in some localities the common British oak will attain double the height and breadth of head which it does in others. Our business here is to illustrate a principle; and we shall leave it to planters who approve of it, to deduce the rules from it which will apply to their particular cases.

The next point which we have to discuss is the advantage or disadvantage of introducing nurse-plants into plantations. That these have a tendency to accelerate the growth of trees in an upward direction for a number of years after the plantation is made, there can be no doubt; but this is always at the expense of the side-branches and side-leaves, and consequently of the thickness of the trunk of the tree to be nursed. The question, therefore, is, what is gained by the nursing? Is there any advantage in having a young tree with a tall, slender stem, and few or no side-branches, rather than a tree of half the height, with a short, stiff stem, clothed with branches and leaves from the ground upwards? We admit that evergreen nurses, such as the Scotch pine and the spruce fir, considerably improve the climate of a plantation, by preventing the radiation[7:17:796] of heat from the ground; and that, provided they did not do injury in other respects, in this respect they would do good. The question as to nurses or no nurses may, we think, be satisfactorily answered in the following manner: Suppose we adopt the principle already laid down, that all trees in plantations intended to produce timber should be kept at such distances by thinning and pruning, as that the extremities of their lowest branches should never interfere. Then, having fixed on the kind of tree the growth of which is to be the main object of the plantation, and the number of these that, when full grown, can stand upon an acre, or any given surface, plant them in their proper places, and fill up the intervals with the trees intended to serve as nurses. As the nurses increase in size, and their branches touch their principals, let them be pruned or thinned; so as in no way to prevent the principals from being clothed with branches from the ground upwards on every side, or to prevent the leaves on these branches from being fully exposed to the sun. In this way the climate of a plantation will be improved by evergreen nurses; and the nurses will protect the trees from high winds till they have attained to such a size and vigour of growth, that the annual shoots produced on the top of the tree will be so short that they can be ripened in a colder climate than would be required to ripen a longer shoot produced by a young tree. This mode of nursing trees, it may be observed, is widely different from the practice of letting nurses and principals draw up one another, in which case both will be alike without side-branches; and consequently, when the nurses are removed, the principals, weakened by having their stems unprotected by branches exposed to the cold in winter and to the heat in summer, will remain stationary a number of years; in some cases dying away altogether, and in others making so little progress, that nearly as much would be gained in the produce of timber by cutting them down, and training up a single shoot from the stools, or by trenching the ground and replanting, as by letting them grow.

We have now taken a cursory glance at the principal points which require to be considered in the culture of trees, and in the formation and management of plantations; but the subject is of very great extent, and could not be entered into in all the requisite details in even double or treble the space which can be allotted to this article. -Our object in writing it has been rather to direct attention to general principles, than to lay down specific rules; satisfied as we are that, in every department of agriculture and gardening, too much deference is paid to routine practices, and too little recourse is bad to the principles on which these practices are founded. Above all, planters do not seem sufficiently aware of the important agency of leaves and light, not only in the production of quantity of timber, but of quality also.

It may be necessary to observe, that in this article the botanic names are generally those adopted in Loudon’s Arboretum et Fruticetum Britannicum, to which work we would refer for more ample information upon all the points which have been here touched on, and on many others directly or indirectly connected with the subject. (v. v. v. v.)