the first edition of the best eighteenth century guide to nursery practice.” BOUTCHER, WILLIAM. A Treatise on Forest-Trees: containing not only the best methods of their culture hitherto practised, but a variety of new and useful discoveries...plain directions for removing most of the valuable kinds of forest-trees...and on the same principles, (with as certain success) for transplanting hedges...to which are added, directions for the disposition, planting and culture of hedges. [4], xlviii, 259, [4]pp., with the printed title, but bound without the engraved half-title-page as is often the case. Contemporary tree calf, neatly rebacked retaining the original red morocco label. Some wear to the corners and slight foxing. 4to. Edinburgh. R. Fleming. 1775. ~ Blanche Henrey 476, noting that the extra engraved title-page is present in only "a few copies". The work was published by private subscription and endeavoured to promote a more scientific approach to arboriculture. Instead of growing as many trees as possible on a small site and then selling the "crowded, half-suffocated" plants at a very low price, Boutcher argued for a change to quality not just quantity. His ideas "under-valued by the ignorance of his age" did not find favour and it was not until the appearance of Sir Henry Steuart's "Planter's Guide" of 1828 that changes in nursery practice were to take place. In retrospect Boutcher's work must be seen as the best eighteenth century guide to nursery practice, and in the opinion of H.L. Edlin (Trees, Woods and Man, 1956), still contains "much of interest and practical application in present-day forest nurseries".