N 3
The lawns were given heavy dressings of soil and vegetable ash and have much improved in consequence.
Blake Garden, West End Park, King's Park, Kowloon, Civil Hospital and Lunatic Asylum, Senior Officers' Quarters, Leighton Hill, Indian School, Sukunpo, Volunteer Headquarters, Helena May Institute, Statue Square, Victoria Hospital, Senior Officers' Quarters, Homestead, Government Pavilions and Villas, Royal Observatory and Kowloon Magistracy. The grounds of all the places mentioned were kept in order during the year, undesirable undergrowth was removed, storm damaged trees and shrubs were removed and replaced and grass lawns, banks, trees, shrubs and other plants were given such attention as they required.
HERBARIUM AND LIBRARY.
The interior of the building was treated by the Government Analyst on June 16th and 17th with Hydrocyanic gas in order to destroy the insects which cause so much destruction among the books and plant specimens, up to the end of the year no live insect was found in any part of the building.
Plant specimens of botanical interest and economic value were identified for local collectors and institutions in the Colony and elsewhere.
FORESTRY.
Formation of Pine Tree Plantations.-Increased areas were dealt with during the year, and the number of in situ sowings of seed of Pinus Massoniana amounted to 197,476 as against 70,500 in 1926. Not less than 5 seeds were sown in each site in order to allow for failure and damage by small animals and birds; the total weight of seed used in this method of re-afforestation was 115 pounds.
The areas dealt with were West Bay peninsula, Mount Collinson, Stanley Mound Catchwater, Tai Wo Po, Shek Li Pui reservoir area, Kowloon Tsai, hills adjoining Kowloon Bay, Castle Peak near the Police Station, Taipo Forestry Reserve and bare hills in the Peak District.
Other and more grassy areas where germination of seeds without preparation of sites may be expected were sown by the broadcast method, the total weight of seeds of Pinus Massoniana used in this work was 995 pounds; trials are now being made with Leucaena glauca and 129 pounds of seeds of this tree were used, experimental sowings were made with small lots of Pinus insularis, Cunninghamia sinensis, Acacia pennata and Acacia confusa.
Broad-leaved Trees Planted. Small groups of the following trees were planted in the young Pine plantations and the more sheltered areas on the Island and in the New Territories, the major portion of such work being carried out in Taipo Forestry