The Star. MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 1903. PLANTING THE HILLS.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 7809, 14 September 1903, Page 2

The Star. MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 1903. PLANTING THE HILLS.

■ The latest advocate of tho idea of planting portions of the, Port Hails with cither English or native tre-. s is the curator of tho Christchurch Domain. Mr Taylor professes himself a warm supporter of the project. " If," he says, " the remnants of native bush were carefully contrive;!, and beech and birch trees, with tluir beautiful change of foliage, as wfll as oaks, elms, pines and other varieties, whnli it is known would flourish admirably on tho Port Hills, wore planted systematically every year, the scenic effect would in the future be superb, while tho ready supplies of timbvr which would be available might be the beginning of new Industrie;?." Mr Taylor is merely echoing the opinions of others who have advocated what ho now proposes. Wo -ourselves have at different time;? during the past five years urged a similar step to that which- he is now urging. But our opinions have been framed more or less on guesswork. Mr Taylor, on the other hand, bases his upon his own experience of forestry in lvngland. Arboriculture, as carried on at Home, is, he points out, not only instrumental in beautifying the country, but -has also, an essentially practical side. Metals have limited tho use. of wood without'abolishing it. Heart of oak is no longer necessary for shipbuilding purposes, and in many-other industries timber has been pushed aside by the hardy qualities of iron and steel. But it still lias its uses nevertheless. It is still employed in the building, cabinetmaking and other allied trades, and as far as it is' possible to see the future holds out no prospects of its being completely superseded. So long as timber is an* essential factor in industry, so long 7"Vh)l tree cultivation be worth attention. To us the* Port Hills appear to be peculiarly adapted for timber-growing. They arc near a large and expanding city, they are within easy reach of a port, and they are ." tapped," by a railway line. Moreover, in ,mariy parts their soil contains an abundance of plant food. On. the other hand, there are obstacles to\Mr Taylor's scheme which must be clear to most people. For'one thing, the hills are mostly private property, and any scheme of forestry to be properly effective would have to be a public work The land would have to be acquired, and the difficulties in the way of acquiring it might be very great. Still, Vv3 cannot believe that they -would prove to be insurmountable.^ On more than one occasion recently incipient movements have been started in the direction, of planting certain localities on the hills, amd of conserving the little native bush remaining on other parts. It only needs a little more enthusiasm and some organisation .to give a comprehensive shape to thesei movements, and we are certain that a practical scheme would l>e evolved. The prospect is inviting enough to whet the energies of reformers, speculators, lovers of the picturesque, in fact, of all classes of the comoninnity. -.