ON THE VALUE OF TIMBER FOR ORNAMENT AND PROFIT.
Among all the varied productions (says Strutt[26]) with which nature has
adorned the surface of the earth, none awakens our sympathies, or
interests our imagination, so powerfully as those venerable trees which
seem to have stood the lapse of ages—silent witnesses of the successive
generations of man, to whose destiny they bear so touching a
resemblance, alike in their budding, their pride, and their decay.
[26] Introduction to “Sylva Britannica.”
Hence, in all ages, the earliest dawn of civilization has been marked by
a reverence of woods and groves; devotion has fled to their recesses for
the performance of her most solemn rites; princes have chosen the
embowering shade of some wide-spreading tree, under which to receive the
deputations of the neighbouring “great ones of the earth;” and angels
themselves, it is recorded, have not disdained to deliver their
celestial messages beneath the same verdant canopy. To sit under the
shadow of his own fig-tree, and drink of the fruit of his own vine, is
the reward promised, in Holy Writ, to the righteous man; and the
gratification arising from the site of a favoured and long-remembered
tree is one enjoyed in common by the peer, whom it reminds, as its
branches wave over his head whilst wandering in his hereditary domains,
of the illustrious ancestors who may have seen it planted; and by the
peasant, who recalls, as he looks on it in his way to his daily labours,
the sports of his infancy round its venerable trunk, and regards it at
once as his chronicler and landmark.
Who indeed amongst us, in whatever position of life he may be, or in
what land soever his lot may be cast, does not often find his mind’s eye
resting upon some favourite tree; it may be some huge elm on his village
green, where, in the dim twilight, he either told or listened to the
fairy tale or exciting ghost story; or the spreading oak, beneath whose
shade he has picnicked; or the haunted grove, where his tale, though
only whispered, yet spoke loudly to a willing listener.
Now shift the scene to moonlight glade,
Where dapper elves beneath the shade
Of oak or elm their revels keep,
What time we plodding mortals sleep.
Next lead me to some haunted grove,
Such as the Fauns and Dryads love;
Or seat me by some brook, whose swell
Makes music like a Naiad’s shell;
Then touch the tree ’neath which I lie,
Till it unclose to ear and eye
Whate’er it may have heard or seen
Since spring first clothed its stems with green.
_Spirit of the Woods._
But we must not be led astray by the poetical emotions which are sure to
rise up within us at the contemplation of forest trees; we shall
therefore confine ourself, in this treatise, more particularly to a
general description of the genera and species of trees usually grown in
Great Britain for timber, with an explanation of some of the principles
connected with the growth of timber.
Timber in a country where trees are almost, if not wholly, planted,
affords a subject for consideration very different from that of wild
aboriginal forests; in the former we have to consider our subjects as
objects for cultivation, and that with a view of yielding profit or
pleasure, or both, whilst the study of trees in the forest would
naturally resolve itself into a botanical and physiological inquiry into
specific forms. While, therefore, we would not here neglect the latter,
our arrangement of trees and their history will have more particular
reference to their cultivation, a subject which will probably address
itself more especially to the landlord than to the tenant farmer.
In the main, then, the primary object of growing trees is that of
profit, whilst a secondary—or with some even primary—consideration will
be that of ornamentation; and we admit that, apart from any other
consideration, a landed estate without timber would be as bare, cold,
and comfortless as a house without furniture; at the same time, too many
trees, and these in themselves awkwardly grown and stuck about in all
sorts of awkward positions, would be like an over-furnished and
ill-regulated mansion.
We would, then, have that kind of thought exercised in planting which
should result, if not in profit, at least in providing ornament without
loss, either to the tenant on the one hand, or the proprietor on the
other. To this end we would advocate setting apart portions of the
estate for the cultivation of timber in belt plantations, or even in
woods, having reference to the nature of the soil and general position,
and this in preference to hedge-row planting, as long lines of ash or
elm can never look ornamental however well-grown; but, inasmuch as this
mode of growth necessitates lopping, the timber is so long in growing
and then is never good, that it seldom pays even the expenses attendant
upon its utilization.
In plantations, again, you can adopt such a system of growing nurses
that some return for the outlay will not be many years in commencing,
and so profit by way of rent is not delayed as in hedge-row growth.[27]
[27] We are aware that the landlord too often considers hedge-row timber
as costless; but the injury which it entails upon the farm, and its
nearly useless character, leads us to view the matter in a different
light.
In order to understand what we would call a forest nurse, let us suppose
that in a certain position our object is to grow a plantation of oak: we
might in this case mix beech, elm, larch, Scotch firs, and spruce with
the oak; these, by growing together, would increase an upward
development; they would “pull each other up,” as usually expressed. Soon
this lateral growth would cause them to approach each other too closely,
and then the larch would be first cut out, perhaps for hop-poles; next
the spruce and Scotch firs for fencing and other purposes; then the
beech and elm as they became useful; and at last, all the nurses gone,
the oak would be sufficient to occupy the space, and, though many years
have passed in the process, the wood has all the time yielded something
towards rent and expenses.
In planting, of course, the kinds to be planted will depend upon
circumstances, and so to a great extent will the methods to be adopted
in planting; it may, however, be here stated that three plans of
preparing the soil have been recommended:—1. _Trenching_; 2. _Pitting_;
and 3. _Ploughing_.
1. _Trenching_ is a very expensive process, and, upon the whole, is
scarcely worth the cost. It is true that digging and turning over the
soil will cause a number of weeds to die, but, on the other hand, it
encourages the growth of greater numbers than it destroys, and it is
doubtful whether weeding can be done so well in the loosened ground as
it could before. Supposing, then, the young trees to be planted in old
turf, we consider trenching to be quite unnecessary; but, as the plants
will flourish best when weeds and grass are kept under, we should advise
the skinning of the turf round them annually for about three years with
a common mattock, and at the same time advantage to be taken of the
opportunity to tread in the trees more firmly when they may have become
loosened; to remove any broken or decayed matter, as in the case of
conifers, to see to the training of a single leader, rather than two or
more; and in all cases where young conifers show an increasing
disposition to grow a great quantity of fruits (cones), we should
either dig around it, and, perhaps, apply a portion of manure, or
sacrifice the plant and put a fresh one in its stead.
This premature fruiting arises sometimes from the roots of the plant
having been too much crippled, either by breaking or drying from being
kept too long out of the ground; we may here state, then, that, if only
to prevent this, in all cases of transplantation, they should be taken
out of the nursery with great care, so as to injure the roots as little
as possible, and further be planted in their new home with the utmost
despatch. Disappointment is sure to result where trees of any kind have
been kept long out of the ground, as they are when bought at market or
in packets at sales. We should never purchase at the latter, unless they
were left in the ground to be fetched as might be required.
As we have been led incidentally to remark upon the subject of crippling
by means of injured roots, we may now point out that the same thing
occurs where young trees have been topped either for mischief, or
injudiciously pruned. We remember having some larches thus damaged by
some vagabond boy, and in seven years they were only dwarf cone-bearing
bushes, whilst others planted at the same time were 15 feet in height.
In this case, then, instant removal, when discovered, and the being
replaced by fresh plants, would after all be a saving of time in getting
useful sticks.
2. _Pitting._—In this process the soil is sometimes dug out so as to
make holes about 2 feet square, the soil being left to weather by the
sides of the holes, and returned around the trees when they are
planted. This is not nearly so expensive as trenching; but it, too, is
not always advisable, for trees have the tendency to confine their roots
to the dug-out space for some years, and so they do not get the hold
upon the ground that they otherwise would.
This plan is that of partial trenching, and we should prefer the former
to the pitting process, unless where stones, such as those found in the
oolite rocks, come to the surface. In such case, the removal of some of
the larger stones and supplementing them with soil from some other
source we have found to be of advantage.
3. _Ploughing_ the soil is as expeditious a plan of preparing and
clearing it as we possess; and now that steam cultivation can be brought
into action for a much greater depth than could be done with horses,
smashing-up the land by its means would be no bad preparation for
planting where this is to be done on tolerably level ground.
While upon this subject we may here quote, as still worthy of attention,
the directions in the fourth edition of the “Sylva.”
Let us now see in what manner we are to prepare the ground for
their reception. The best way is by trenching, or double digging,
as deep as the soil will admit of; but as this is a very expensive
proceeding, and consequently can only be practised upon a small
scale, I shall recommend another good method of preparing the
ground. This is to be done by proper ploughing, and, if agreeable,
the year before the land is planted, it may bear a crop of oats,
rape, or turnips. By this means the sward will be effectually
destroyed. After the crop is off, let the ground be
trench-ploughed, and then harrowed with very heavy harrows, to
break the clods; about the end of October let it be again ploughed
crossways, and harrowed as before. This is the season for planting
the sets, for the ground, by being thus cross-ploughed and well
harrowed, will be in proper order for their reception. The manner
of planting the sets is as follows:—
First, carefully take the plants out of the seed-beds, shorten the
tap-root, and take off part of the side-shoots, that there may be
an equal proportion of strength between the stem and the root. If
the wood is designed to be but small, ten, twenty, or thirty acres,
then lines may be drawn, and the trees planted in rows, four feet
distant from each other, and the trees two feet asunder in the row:
each line must have a man and a boy for planting. The ground being
made light and pliable by cross-ploughing and harrowing, the man
strikes his spade into the earth close to the line; he then takes
it out, and gives another stroke at right angles with it; then the
boy, having a parcel of plants under his left arm, takes one with
his right hand, and readily puts it into the crevice made by the
spade at the second stroke; after this the man gently presses the
mould to it with his foot, and thus the young oakling is planted.
He proceeds in the same manner to the next, and so on till all is
finished. An active man with his boy will plant 1,500 or 2,000 in a
day; and while they are planting others should be employed in
taking up fresh sets from the seed-bed, sorting them, and preparing
their roots. In short, a sufficient number of hands should be set
to every part of this work, that the whole may be carried on with
despatch and regularity; for the ground cannot be too soon
furnished with its plants after it is in readiness to receive them,
neither can the plants be put too early into the ground after they
are taken up from the seminary. Those plants which are nearly of
the same size should be made to occupy a large quarter together,
and the weakest should be left in the seminary a year longer to
gain strength.
The trees, either for small or large plantations, being in the
ground, the first care should be to fence them well from cattle,
and even, if possible, from rabbits and hares. The next should be
to keep them clear from weeds, that they may not be incommoded in
their growth. In all lands weeds must be carefully watched and
destroyed at their first appearance. In small plantations hoeing
may do; but where the plantations are large and noble, a
double-shelving plough should be provided; and when the weeds are
got two or three inches high, this must be drawn exactly down the
middle of each row by horses with their mouths muzzled, somebody
leading the foremost horse; this plough will effectually throw a
ridge each way, so that the edge of it will be almost contiguous
to the plants on both sides. This being done, the whole surface of
the ground will be changed, and the weeds all buried, except a few
about the stems of the plants, which a man following the plough
should cut or pluck up. In this manner the ground may lie until a
fresh crop of weeds present themselves; when these are about three
inches high, a common plough should be provided to go up one side
of the row and down the other, to plough the ridges made by the
double-shelving plough into their former places, men following with
hoes to destroy such weeds as are near the stems of the trees. Thus
will the whole scene be changed again; the ground will appear as
new-tilled; and in this condition it may remain until the weeds
call for the double-shelving plough a second time, which must also
be followed alternately with the common plough as occasion may
require. By this means the ground will not only be kept clear of
weeds, but the earth, by constant stirring, will be more replete
with nourishing juices, the gentle showers will produce their good
effects, the sun will have his influence, and all the powers of
vegetation will combine to nourish and set forward the infant oak.
This work must be repeated every year, until the oaks are of a
height sufficient to destroy the weeds, which may be, perhaps, in
three or four years, according to the goodness of the ground in
which they are planted.
Still, notwithstanding the care sometimes taken in planting, we have
often observed that the simple method of making triangular or cruciform
openings with the spade, thus—[Y] [+], and carefully dividing the roots
in putting the plants in their places, and afterwards well pressing the
turf against them, has succeeded as well as any other method. Indeed, we
have known plants put in with only a single slit; but this never
succeeds so well, though it is more expeditiously performed. Where,
however, trees are put in at so much an acre, the plan of action must be
specified, and the proceedings carefully watched, to ensure its due
performance, or the work will most likely be done in the quickest, and
not best, manner.