CHAPTER VII

PLANTING EXPOSED GROUND

As the majority of plantations for purely economic purposes are formed on the wind-swept moor or hillside, the successful management of these is a matter of considerable importance.

There are many difficulties to encounter in planting high-lying and exposed ground that one would never have to think about in low-lying and sheltered situations. Planting, for instance, should not be commenced until February or March, as, by deferring it till that time, the newly-inserted plants will be fresh and vigorous, and ready for an immediate start in growth, which would not be the case if they had been put out in autumn and subjected during winter to the inevitable wind shaking that is always to be reckoned with on exposed ground.

The choice of trees, too, for planting on wind-swept ground is a matter of far more moment than is generally supposed, for that there are certain species of trees peculiarly suitable for withstanding prolonged storms is well known to those who have had to do with the forming of woods and plantations at high altitudes. The size of trees planted has also much to do with the after success of the woods, and it may be well at the outset to say that these should not exceed about 12 in. in height on the most favoured sites to about from 6 in. to 9 in. on the more exposed grounds. They should also be properly prepared by frequent careful transplanting for the situations they are intended to occupy, as it can hardly be expected that a young and immature tree can, after being brought from a probably sheltered lowland nursery—as nine-tenths of those in this country are—to a high piece of ground, where at times the wind blows with terrific fury, and where one can scarcely stand upright, have sufficient stamina to stand against such odds and difference as must and do exist between the two points at present under consideration.

Sometimes it is well to trench over a piece of ground on partially-exposed land, and insert therein for a couple of years before the proposed plantation is to be formed, the young trees intended for planting out. This has a wonderful effect in hardening and inuring them to severe cold and a wind-swept situation. By forming a nursery of young trees by the sea-coast, I have known great success attend the formation of woods and plantations in maritime situations, and like results are sure to attend the planting out of trees in any uncongenial and unfavourable situation.

About the trees to be planted, being such as are sufficiently hardy to withstand prolonged storms, we will now say a few words. In the outer line—or, rather lines—the Scotch, Austrian, and Corsican Pines (_Pinus sylvestris_, _P. austriaca_, and _P. laricio_) are of first value, since they are able to stand against the storms of the hillside and produce a great amount of shelter to other less hardy kinds. It is often only necessary to make a wind-barrier, as it were—that is, to plant well-tried evergreen kinds, from which shelter can be obtained next the most windy position, then to follow up with other kinds that are second hardy in nature, and so on inwards; while, in the very centre of the plantation, almost any kind of tree can be used.

The =Austrian Pine= has been successfully planted at high altitudes, and in the most exposed situations, and on the Continent it has proved itself of great value for breezy sites and maritime situations.

The State forests are composed of not a few Austrian pines, and they are greatly valued for the shelter and warmth they afford to other less hardy kinds of trees. The best results are to be obtained if planted when young, for when removed at a greater age, with roots large and rampant of growth, it is with great difficulty that they can be got to keep upright. Unfortunately the timber is of no special value.

The =Corsican Pine= is equally as good as the latter for using where winds are of common occurrence, proving stout and strong, rooting well, and presenting a broad surface of hardy evergreen foliage to the blast. It is a good timber-producer, and, being well fitted for growing in patches close together, will yet be largely used for forest work in this country.

About the =Scotch Pine= it is, perhaps, needless to speak, for every one who has travelled in Scotland, particularly in the more exposed northern parts, must have made himself acquainted with the capabilities of this valuable native tree. It can grow and flourish almost anywhere—on pure gravel, on the rocky mountain-slope, or by the rushing brookside, and in all these positions it seems to feel quite happy and contented, as the beautiful silvery glaucous foliage, the upright, rampant growth, and the cheery cinnamon or terra-cotta bark clearly indicate.

With these three excellent storm-resisting trees for an outer barrier almost any kind of planting can be engaged in, for the shelter they afford is amply sufficient to start away into rapid growth even our only second-class hardy kinds of trees. The =Sycamore= is a good tree for planting where the storms blow loud and long, being able to withstand in a very commendable way the first brunt of the hillside winds. It is also a good timber-producer, the wood at all times being easily disposed of, and at a very remunerative price.

The =Elder= and =Mountain Ash= are other valuable small-growing trees for planting on exposed ground, both flourishing apace even in very high and exposed woodlands.

In the =Scotch= or =Mountain Elm= (_Ulmus montana_) we have a first-class tree for planting as shelter, while the =Alder=, =Willows= of various kinds, and the =Hornbeam= should all receive attention in the formation of woodlands on exposed and storm-swept sites.

The =American Winged Elm= (_Ulmus alata_) has few equals for withstanding long-continued storms at high altitudes, for it sends out its cork-covered branches without fear of harm into the very teeth of the blast. I have noticed how well suited this elm is for planting on exposed, high-lying ground by the few examples that occur at considerable elevations in some of the screen-belts that have been formed on the flanks of the Snowdon range of hills, where the tree looks quite as healthy and happy as at lower elevations in a sheltered park.

The =Larch=, be it remembered, is a good tree for planting on exposed ground, for, though it gets twisted about and untidy of appearance, it has a wonderful recuperative nature, and will succeed well even when planted on the margins of exposed woodlands. By taking advantage of natural tree or shrub growth when forming plantations at high altitudes much good may be brought about. A young tree planted to the leeward of a clump of gorse, broom, juniper, or birch has a much better chance of succeeding than another planted where it has no shelter from the worst winds of the particular district. These wild clumps of natural shrubs should be encouraged in every way, for they will not only give a great amount of shelter, but help to thicken up the plantations as well. In exposed woodlands it is a good plan to plant up the margins with such hardy wild shrubs as the gorse, broom, thorn, juniper, blackthorn, etc., all of which will afford a great amount of shelter to the young plants when newly inserted, and help them to start away freely.

The =Common Beech= is a good all-round tree for planting in exposed sites, but especially where the soil is poor, or, in other words, composed principally of chalk or gravel. Some of the highest grounds in several of the English counties are occupied by thriving beech plantations, these acting as landmarks for many miles around, as notably at Knockholt and on the Chiltern Hills.

The =Oak= and =Ash= should both find places in high-lying and exposed woodlands, for, although they cannot be planted successfully along the margins, yet they thrive well where a little shelter is afforded, and where the soil is fairly deep and rich.

The =Birch= cannot be passed by in any list of trees for planting in exposed places; it thrives well at high altitudes, and where only a small quantity of soil overlies the rock.

The =Wild= and =Bird Cherries= (_Cerasus vulgaris_ and _C. Padus_) are excellent ornamental trees for exposed grounds, where they grow to a large size and flower freely. They can both subsist where but a small depth of soil is present.

=Preparation of the Ground and Planting.=—As regards the pits for planting, these should be well prepared—that is, the soil loosened up and made free for the roots to run in, which will greatly help the trees to become quickly established—a point of great importance on exposed ground. The top turf may be chopped up and placed in the bottom of the pit, this serving, when decomposed, as manure to the roots, and assisting to promote vigorous growth. In planting, place the best-rooted sides of the trees to the windward or most exposed site, and do not cover with the soil to a greater depth than that in which the plant stood whilst in the nursery border. On very exposed sites, and where the soil is thin, notch planting and inserting with the planting iron are to be recommended.

It will be well, at stated intervals, to examine young plantations formed on high-lying and exposed ground, to see that the plants do not get shaken about with the wind and holes formed around the stems. This latter is highly injurious to the welfare of the plants, as the air passing down the stem side causes the roots to get dry to an inordinate degree.

Wind-swaying, where these holes have been formed around the stem, is also hurtful, as the tender roots get strained and barked, and ill fitted for maintaining a healthy condition of the young trees. The holes formed by swaying of the stems should be filled up with fine soil—not stones, as is sometimes the case—and a small piece of stiff, grassy turf tramped firmly against the stem on the side opposite that from which the worst winds may be expected.

Should rank vegetation, which, is, however, rarely met with at high altitudes and on exposed ground, interfere with the growth of the young trees, it would be well to have such cut over and either burned or spread evenly over the ground.