REPORT OF VERNON COUNTY HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 157 



from the other nursery there — that of the Ft. Scott, or Mr. Fink ct Son 

 nursery — consisting; of peach, apricot and apple trees that I know 

 came in good, sound condition and well packed. There was not twen- 

 ty-four hours delay in setting out those that were set. The peaches 

 and apricots were all set out in the orchard and about half of 

 the apple trees, and the planting job had to lay over Sunday, and by 

 Monday morning the weather became so inclement that the other 

 half of the apple trees had to remain healed in all winter. The setting 

 out of trees in orchard was done in my absence, but under my particu- 

 lar instructions, and may have been badly or well done, but the heal- 

 ing in was done under my immediate supervision. In healing the 

 trees were planted strung out in deep trenches, standing up, and with 

 the diit thrown up pretty well around them, particular pains taken to 

 fill the instertices between the tiees with tine dirt so as to have the 

 roots thoroughly protected from the air or cold, with the dirt well 

 pressed and packed. The men employed on the job thought I was 

 taking unnecessary pains, but if I had taken any less pains and pre- 

 cautions I believe I would have lost fully nine-tenths of my trees, for 

 all my peaches set out in the orchard died or were so badly damaged 

 that they had to be cut back almost to the ground. Over two-thirds 

 died. The apricots were a trifia less damaged than the peach trees, 

 and over one-third of my apple trees set out in the orchard died and 

 the rest more or less damaged, whilst a very slight per cent, of my 

 apple trees healed in were damaged. The extra care taken to throw 

 up the dirt and to have it well pressed, packed and set in deep trench 

 aided to protect and save the trees healed in ; also common sense and 

 observation would teach us that those trees set out in the orchard were 

 isolated and did not receive the same protection in the dirt in being 

 up in a mound around tliem, and their recent transplanting had in great 

 measure cut off their supply of stimulus and nourishment, ibr the or- 

 gans of nutrition did not have time to appropriate the food around 

 them, hence they were not in a condition to sustain the excess of cold 

 and had to succumb, and, too, there was another factor not generally 

 recognized that tended to preserve the trees healed in from the effects 

 of the cold. It is this: When trees are healed in thickly or bunched 

 closely together they will heat, and in a very mild winter as we have 

 had in years past in Southwest Missouri, this alone will kill them as 

 effectually as in the intense cold. Strawberries left too long in close 

 packages is a very good illusjtration in proof of this also. Th^re un- 

 doubtedly are evidences of the fact in the unnatural warmth that is 

 perceptible to the sense of touch amongst the the roots, as in the case 

 of sweet potatoes undergoing a sweat, but not to so great an extent ^ 



