Slackening seed beds, Newton Nursery
Photographs courtesy of Abbie Gordon, Banchory.
Slackening Sitka spruce seed beds in Newton Nursery. The undercutting bar is set at quite a steep angle and is pulled through just below root level causing the soil to lift and loosen. The young seedlings are then easily lifted by hand into boxes and taken across to the lining out machines where they are then planted in lining out beds for the last stage of their life in the tree nursery.
Sitka spruce was often grown for 18 months in seed beds and a further 18 months in lining out beds and thus 3 years old (known as one and half + one and half) when sent out to the forests. There were different growing regimes for different species and also for trees destined for the open hill or those planting in weedy felled areas. Trees going out from the nursery could be also be 1+1, 2+1 and 2+2.
Groups: Forest Nurseries, Forestry in Action, Other Vehicles and Machines