COMMUNICATIONS. 



237 



In the spring the young Beech trees, and the lower branches 

 of the older ones, are covered with dead leaves of the last year's 

 growth. These old leaves remain until they are crowded off by 

 the young foliage of a*^ other year. The tops of the larger trees 



are usually bare of dead leaves. 

 In the books we may read 

 the following directions for the 

 cultivation of the Beech from 

 the seed, that being the mode 

 'usually adopted: " Shake the 

 nuts from the tree as they ripen, 

 dry them in the sun, or in an 

 airy shed or loft, after wnich 

 they may be mixed with sand 

 that is perfectly dry, at the rate 

 of three bushels of sand to one 

 of mast, which only retains its 

 vital properties for one year. 

 Sow the seed one inch apart, in 

 March, in a light rich soil, and 

 cover them about one inch ; 

 the tender young plants will 

 KED OAK. '^i^ HtSilBiB y appear in May, when, if the 



season is dry, they should be moderately watered. In March, 

 the next season, with a spade made very sharp for the purpose, 

 undermine the roots and cut them between four and five inches 

 under the ground. After the plants have stood for two years, 

 or, if in poor soil, three years, they may be transplanted, and in 

 three or four years removed to general plantation." 



Between Ghent and Antwerp, in Belgium, there were former- 

 ly, if not now, very solid and elegant hedges, made of the Beech ; 

 and while we are seeking for the best hedge plant, it might be 

 well for some person, or some Agricultural Society, to try what 

 can be done with the American Beech. The young tre^s are 

 placed eight inches apart, and bent in opposite directions, so as 

 to cross each other with small apertures. They are bound to- 

 gether at the points of intersection, where they soon grow to- 



