146 THE ESSEX NATURALIST
on most soils, except badly-drained or calcareous ones, and
is, of course, planted frequently on very dry sands and
gravels with little top soil, where it grows well. In Essex
its main function seems to be as a nurse for other species,
and it is planted with oak, larch, chestnut, etc. Frequently,
it grows more rapidly than the others, and I know of a mixed
plantation near Brentwood of Scots pine, larch, oak and ash
which has never been thinned and is about thirty years old.
Today it is practically a pure Scots pine plantation, nearly
all the larch, ash and oak having been suppressed. In this
case, as the soil is rather poor, the original selection was
unsuitable.
The Corsican Pine (Pinus laricio) is a native of Europe,
and was introduced to Britain in 1759. It grows faster than
the Scots pine on most soils and makes a good specimen tree,
but would not succeed on very dry sites.
The Spanish or Sweet Chestnut (Castanea Castanea) is
planted chiefly for use as poles. The tree was introduced
from southern Europe, possibly by the Romans, and it
succeeds very well in Essex, where in many cases it is grown
as coppice with oak and chestnut standards. It demands a
lime-free, light soil to succeed well, and is frequently planted
with oak and conifers. In an established wood such as is
found at Wrabness or Billericay, the stools are cut in
rotation every 7-14 years, according to the use for which
the poles are required, and, provided that the work is well
done with an axe, the stools will last for a long time. The
tree is also grown for two other purposes, namely, timber
and nuts, although the latter is incidental. It is quick-
growing and a soil improver, and is mainly planted on old
woodlands.
The Norway Spruce (Picea excelsa) is grown to a very
limited extent in moist places in the county, but it thrives
far better in the north and west country. It was introduced
into Britain about 300 years ago. Frequently, the young
trees are planted out on moist land between newly-planted
poplars, where they are grown exclusively as Christmas
trees, but tall spruce are comparatively uncommon.