DESTRUCTION OF TREES AT HOME.

Lyttelton Times, Volume LVI, Issue 6501, 28 December 1881, Page 5

DESTRUCTION OF TREES AT HOME.

Some interesting statistics as to the destruction of tree* in the October hurricane hare jut been published by the “ Journal of Forestry.” In Berkshire alone no less than 2000 trees hare been seriously injured. Old elms, beeshts, thorns and birches hare suffered severely; but English oaks form nearly onethird of the total number thrown down or badly broken. In the North of England the min was even more serious. It is computed that some 4000 trees were injured in the parks and pleasuregrounds at Alnwick. In that part of Sherwood which it called Birilands, the baroe among the fine old oaks and birches has been almost unexampled, while the young plantations at Thoresby bare fortunately suffered but little. At Welbeck the Spanish chestnut trees hare been laid low by regiments, and the poplars hare been terribly thinned, as well as the oaks. At Stamford the famous lime tree, said to bare been planted by Queen Elisabeth during oue of her many visits to Burleigh, has been almost completely wrecked. The trunk was divided into four parts about seven feet from the ground, each of the divirions being as large as an ordinary tree. Three of these have been tom away, leaving only the smallest one and some small branches remaining. At Bafford some fine elms were uprooted ; bat perhaps on no demesne except Alnwick and Wielbeck has each damage been done as at Worksop Manor. Ac Worktop and Clumber, which, like Welbeck, are among the “ dukeries ” carved out of that ascieet forest which once extended from Nottingham almost to Doncaster, the trees came crashing down in every direction, the Spanish chestnuts, oaks, and birches suffering moot severely. The shade of Dr Johnson would smile at a report of the damage done to trees in Scotland, bat it is nevertheless true that some 1500 were blown down on the Qlamia estates alone. The greatest disaster of all occurred, however, on toe iynningbame estates, in Haddingtonshire, where t he damage is computed at many thousands of pounds. Unfortunately such losses cannot be swiftly repaired. Trees require time for development especially those of toe most valuable' kind, and the monarch* of the forest cannot be quickly replaced. Beech trees appear in all places to have weathered the storm well, thus confirming the earlier and necessarily hasty conclusions arrived at, while ode and elm, lime and birch, have been riven to atoms by the tempest. —Daily New,t.