Irish peats and their drainage for afforestation.

Abstract

Systems of drainage, like peats evolve with time and this evolution has been extremely obvious in forestry. In Northern Ireland our evolution has been proceeding actively since 1949. Evolution is brought about by progressive changes of state and where this process is applied to ideas a healthy, forward looking state of mind is indicated. It is essential, however, that the ideas are soundly based on scientific fact. In the case of the drainage of peat there appears to be a dearth of such facts. As a result foresters sometimes have doubts about their solution to the drainage problem. This paper does not purport to supply basic scientific facts required, but is designed to stimulate a more basic approach and to build a foundation from which a more fundamental consideration of the problem may be made. [...]