185Y.] The Root. 103 



up the holes with chip or stable manure, thus forming a loose soil 

 extending to the wall of the basin, where the roots will be most ef- 

 fectually impeded by the hard clay. 



If you can set but six trees in a year, do it right, remembering it is 

 for a generation, not for a year's crop. After having prepared the 

 ground as directed, dig a hole, not as before recommended, but — the 

 ground being stirred at a sufficient uniform depth throughout — large 

 enough to include all the roots — tap root, and all its appendages. 

 And be sure you now do not set it too deep ; and here we are led to 

 inquire again just hoiv deep! Without going here into minutiae, we 

 would say, set simply the roots into the ground and no part of the top. 

 Or if you would prefer it, take the stereotyped phrase of the nursery- 

 men, though certainly not very definite — 'as deep as it was grown 

 in the nursery; ' or if not satisfied with this you may adopt the plan 

 lately recommended by Col. Wilder, in the setting of dwarf pears — 

 "set a young tree three or four inches below the place of the junc- 

 tion of graft, (fixing some point it is presumed not more than a foot 

 from the ground) so that you may thereby encourage the roots to 

 grow above the junction and thus greatly invigorate and improve the 

 tree, having the benefit of two sets of roots, one set from the quince, 

 and the other from the pear." 



It is presumed that our readers will not regard us serious in re- 

 peating directions, so unphilosophical and unsound, however much 

 we may respect the source from which they emanate. 



Before setting, prepare a cask of what is called puddle, about the 

 consistency of cream. ' Worse and worse,' says the hurried farm- 

 er, ' I have no time to attend to such nonsense.' Then I would 

 simply say, take your own course ; the business of nurserymen is to 

 sell trees, and they will like you for a customer. Immerse the roots 

 of your tree in this puddle that the mouths of the sjyongioles may be 

 filled, and that they be not sent, after a long fast, supperless to bed. 

 Ah, says the impatient farmer, ' I will take a wet time to set my trees, 

 which will supersede the necessity of all this twaddle.' Not so fast, 

 Mr. Farmer ; you had better go and get a cart-load of loose dry earth, 

 if to be found, than to cover the roots with the wet lumps you are 

 about to throw upon them, which will soon be as dry as brickbats ; 

 this you see is the very opposite of your course, but I can not help it. 

 After thus immersing the tree, and setting the spongioles to feeding, 

 (and by the way let the first supper be a good one, out of good earth 

 and a little good compost) be careful of the disposition of the roots ; 



