ENG-1960 — Page 128

PRIMARY PRODUCTION

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many parts of the Colony and soil erosion in its train. Villagers have forestry lots on the lower hill slopes, but the pine trees in most are so scattered and badly lopped that they scarcely alter the barren aspect of the land.

Forest reserves are for the most part co-extensive with the water catchment areas. The reserves are divided into compartments of 200-300 acres, intersected by paths and fire barriers cleared of vegetation. The main species planted is pine (Pinus Massoniana), with Brisbane box (Tristania conferta) next in number, but experi- mental plots have been made of a wide variety of other species and some of these are now being planted more widely. Species of Casuarina and Eucalyptus are among the most promising.

Depending on the weather, planting usually starts in the cool, wet spring and continues until June or July. Although planting has been successful in the late summer, trees planted after July have usually had too short a period to establish themselves before the dry weather in October.

The rains of 1960 came very fitfully, between unusually long dry spells, and planting progressed more slowly than had been planned. 965 acres were planted in the forest reserves and 114 acres in village forestry lots. 1,262 acres of previous years' plant- ings were also supplemented and replaced.

In the Tai Lam Forest Reserve, afforestation continued in the remaining grasslands of the direct catchment area; planting gangs were helped by 150 prisoners from the Tai Lam Prison. A small extension was made to the Tai Po Kau Forest Reserve, and over three quarters of the Pat Heung and Fu Shui Forest Reserves were planted up by the year's end. All these reserves extend unbroken across the mountains of the Colony from Castle Peak in the west to Tai Po in the east and together make up about 13,000 acres.

Planting was also carried out in the Kowloon Hills Forest Reserve and at Shap Long, Lantau Island. The work at Shap Long was done by prisoners from the Chi Ma Wan Prison and, as all available land on this peninsula had now been planted, work began on the Shek Pik catchment area.

Assistance to village forestry continued, the object being to teach the villagers how to plant and manage their forestry lots