MR TANNOCK’S TOUR

Otago Witness, Issue 3523, 20 September 1921, Page 7

MR TANNOCK’S TOUR

REPORT OF HIS INVESTIGATIONS. Mr D. Tannock, Superintendent of Reserves, last week submitted to the City Council a full report on his recent trip ro the United Kingdom and Europe. The report was received, a copy being provided tor each member cf the council. " We make tne following extracts —- FORESTRY. My main object m visiting Eurone was to study the methods of afforestation, forest management, forest utilisation, and ccmmunal forests, and, with the assistance of Captain Ellis, the Director of Forestry in New Zealand, -who gave me a letter of to Colonel Sutherland, the Assistant Commissioner of Forestry for Scotland, and other kind friends, I was able to attain mv objective and acquire much valuable information. After a few clays in Scotland, I went over to France,

where forest management has been carried out on scientific lines for many years, and I noted at once that all the trees" wore forester s trees, the first object being to obtain clean, straight stems which would cut up well; and whether planted by the roadsides, canal sides, or beside the rivers, they were tall, • straight, and free of side branches. At tluj School of Forestry at Nancy, I was able to visit the nursery where trees are being grown for replanting the devastated areas, and their methods, while unusual, were ”verv effective and economical. To provide the natural shade for species which require it the seed beds are made in the forest, and to avoid transpointing, the seeds are sown thinly and fh< seedlings (when from three to four years old) are sent straight to the forests. This is a decided saving of both space and money, and is the method we have followed witii Pinus Radiata for several years. I intend to try it with other species! I also visited ike forests round the nursery which are worked by the students from the school. In places where these have been cut rather hard during tile war tney arc toeing underplanted with silver fir. "Forests owned bycommunes and villages were also visited, and the difference between these and the privately-owned ones was very marled. The Communal forests arc managed by- the Government Forestry Derailment, which makes a small charge for supervision. They are cut at the proper time and are a considerable source of revenue to the villages to which they belong. These forests are a dis tinct contrast to the common lands in England, which are covered with heath, broom, gorse. and blackberries, or the domains belonging to some of tile towns in New Zealand, which are a burden on the taxpayer instead of a source of revenue, and at the same time they are solving to some extent the problem of future timber supplies. Along with one of ine inspectors, T_ also visited the forests on the south of Nancy, and saw the methods fallowed in felling, natural regeneration from seed and stools, and thinning. This forest, which is very extensive, is well roaded, and the different sections are divided up by good paths. Plots are treated to demonstrate the effect of the removal of the undergrowth, thinning of the overgrowth, removal of overgrowth or standards, etc. The work of tile School of Fcu-stry in Nancy is thorough and practical, and' the officer* were mosi kind and willing in explain all that was being done in their extensive forests. “ I next visited the Museum of Forestry at the Botanic Gardens, Brussels, and the Arboretum arid Nursery at Groenendael Brussels. In the Arboretum all the trees which are hardy in Belgium are grown in groups to illustrate their rate of growth and behaviour under forest conditions. The results are most instructive, and it. was satisfactory to find that the exotic trees which wo plant in New Zealand are the most satisfactory in Groenendael—Douglas Fir, Menzies Spruce, and Pinus Laricio being the best. I also visited the seed cleaning works, the seed stores, and the nurseries, where trees aro grown for planting ail over Belgium. The Belgian methods, Were very similar to the French, but 1 noted several labour-saving devices which I hope to introduce in our nurseries. Ihe next, forests I visited were at St. Fagan’s Castle, near Cardiff, in Wales, "i hose were mostly hardwoods which had been planted about 14 years. They were pruned and thinned and were making very satisfactory growth. There is a ready sale for young trees suitable for mine timber and large areas have been planted for this purpose, but the landscape effects have not been lost sight of. and considerable areas

are planted with scarlet oaks and wild cherries for autumn tint effects. through the influence of Colonel Sutherland, I was able to visit the School of Forestry at Burnham, and the forests at Murthley Castle, and Dunkeld in Perthshire, Scot land. The School of Forestry was established for training ex-service men, and 1 should say that it will be very successful. -they have a nursery in connection with n, where trees are raised for the various afforestation schemes of the Commission, and the practical work in sylviculture is obtained in ihe forests nearby. I was particularly anxious to see the old Douglas Fir trees at Murthley Castle, which were the first planted in Scotland. They are SO years old, and though they have not been grown under forestry conditions they have splendid trunks, and are very vigorous and healthy. I also saw an old Menzies Spruce which is little short of the Douglas lir in growth, and is also quito healthy, though one would not expect to find it doing its best so far from the sea. There are many young plantations up to 12 and 15 years old, and though these have been neither thinned or pruned, they are quite healthy and growth is satisfactory. The hardwood forests of oak, beech, and birch are being changed into coniferous forests as rapidly as possible, the scrubby oaks being cut down, just sufficient being left to provide a forest screen overhead, and underplanted with Douglas Fir, Norway Spruce, and Scotch Pine. 1 also visited the Museum of Forestry where a complete collection of timbers grown on the estate has been formed, and noted several fine avenues of Lawson’s Cyprus, Thuya Gigantea, etc. I also saw a. small plantation of Douglas Fir, which had been put out at 3ft, apart and never thinned. it was not a recommendation for close planting, and the distances adopted on this estate are now sft, 6ft, and 7ft, according to soil and situation. The nursery at Dunkeld was the bestkept and most satisfactory which I saw on my travels. It is designed to produce 300,000 trees a year, the soil is light and easily worked, and the young trees looked very healthy. A most interesting feature was the hybrid larch, a cross between the European and the Japanese species. In thr first generation the seedlings were mere healthy and more robust than either of the parents, but in the second generation there were many reversions, which is just what we would expect. I visited several of the plantations, which are about 12 to 15 years of age, and very similar in appearance to many of our planations at Ross Crook. Several mixtures had been tried, but in most cases this method of planting has been discontinued, though it is said that larch are less liable to become diseased when mixed with Douglas fir. These plantations wore pruned and cleaned, and it was satisfactory to note that the treatment was exactly the same as ours. I also saw the first larch tree which was planted in Scotland. I was fortunate in meeting Sir John Stirling Maxwell. Bart., who is a most enthusiastic forester, and visited the plantations on his estate at Pollok House, near Glasgow, as well as plantations at Culzean Castle, Bargain.-, Barskimming, Failfcrd, Montgomery C'astle, and in Ayrshire. Portion of my time while in London was spent with Mr Dallemore, the keeper of the Museum of British Forestry and Forest Products at Ketv, and front evidence on all hands forestry is a real live subject in Britain. 'lho problem of replacing the woods which were cut down during the war is being tackled in a thorough and practical manner, and all foresters were prepared to discuss with me the methods they are adopting and also our New Zealand methods. Now methods are being tried, and it was distinctly encouraging to find that wider planting and planting straight from the seed beds, both of which we follow, are being recognised as the correct thing. The remainder of the report dealt with parks and gardens.