MISCELLANEOUS PAPERS. 483 



which are near the surface, and a row of Northern Spys, the roots of which 

 penetrate far more deeply, because we ourselves are unwillin<; to pay for 

 the expense of this care, but it is nevertheless true that with difPerent 

 species and varieties of trees, difPerent management is required in their 

 successful removal. The argument of keeping proper balance between top 

 and root, is of very little weight when the root is all gone to begin with, 

 so that we have to remove the top to comj)ort with it. But with both top 

 and root before us, it is desirable to save as much of the former as 

 possible, and to accomplish this and jireserve the balance we must neces- 

 sarily take every precaution to save as nearly as possible, the complete 

 system of the latter. You may think it will not pay to take all these pre- 

 cautious, but look into your own experience and see how much time you 

 have lost, what uneven orchards you have, what dissapointments you have 

 undergone because of your lack of attention to the root of the matter. 



It is better to plant fewer trees with no percentage of loss, than to 

 multiply the number and meet with disappointment. I have no patience 

 with a careless man in the nursery or the orchard. 



To the intelligent ruralist there is no more delightful occupation than 

 the planting of trees. If intelligence and thoughtful care guide the opera- 

 tion, the success is a most delightful reward, but every error and every bit 

 of carelessness is sure to result in dissatisfaction, and the attraction that 

 should always go with the operation is entirely lost. 



I have no sympathy with a man who can plant a good many trees in a 

 day; if the work is done well the quantity is of little moment, and I wish 

 to emphasize the importance of firming the soil about the roots of a newly 

 transplanted tree. The hand and the foot should be inseparably connected 

 with the work. 



The time for planting trees has been a matter of discussion through all 

 time, and today there is not a perfect unanimity of thought among the 

 experts. But one point is admitted by all, that others being equal, the 

 tree can be most safely removed when it is most completely dormant in its 

 life, and this time follows very closely upon the falling of the leaf. The 

 shock of transplanting through the loss of certain parts is thus reduced to 

 a minimum, and the season of comparative rest is utilized by the tree in 

 granulating the broken surfaces of the roots so that when activity begins, 

 every exposed surface will be ready to throw out new rootlets to feed upon 

 new soil. It is important then that broken surfaces should be in the best 

 possible condition produced by a clean cut of the knife. With bruised or 

 impaired surfaces germs of decay will rapidly get in their work, and 

 decomposition acts directly against the proper healing of the wound. This 

 is a little matter that we all know about, and still in the hurry of work, 

 when we plant our trees, how few of us act up to our knowledge. It 

 becomes important at times to remove trees even in mid-summer. The 

 rarity of the necessity and the chances that we take, emphasize the import- 

 ance of the greatest care. Three suggestions I have to make: First, that 

 if possible the day be a moist one; second, that the operation be done 

 quickly, and, third, that every expanded leaf should be removed. 



It is a "tradition of the Elders," that Evergreens should be transplanted 

 just as they are springing into growth. There is little warrant for it in 

 the practical experience of the largest planters. The life processes in 

 Evergreens are constantly at work, but the time of successful removal 

 should certainly be when these processes are at their lowest ebb, so that 



