Story: Soil erosion and conservation
Burning the forest was the first step in converting most of the North Island hill country into farms. The maturity of native forest showed that natural erosion was minimal. The trees trapped a lot of rainfall before it could disturb the soil, and leaf litter also protected the soil. Deep tree roots anchored the underlying soil even in very wet conditions.
About this item
Alexander Turnbull Library, R. P. Hargreaves Collection
Reference: 1/1-023274; G
Photograph by Frederick Ashby Hargreaves
Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Matauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.