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THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE OF AMERICA. 



TRANSPLANTING PLANTS. 



Bv W. A. Toole. 



Transplanting is the process of removing a plant 

 from a place where you do not want it to grow, to a 

 place where you do want it to grow. 



With many herbaceous plants it is a saving of time 

 and space if seedlings or small plants may be planted 

 on a small area of well prepared and well tended soil, 

 later to be transplanted to a more permanent location. 



This talk might well be prefaced by some remarks 

 on the preparation of the seed bed, and seed sowing. I 

 will only say : when it is known that the small plants 

 or seedlings are to be transplanted later, a better root sys- 

 tem will be found if the soil is not too rich, and contains a 

 moderate amount of sand. It should also be well worked 

 up so as to be in the best of condition or tilth. 



Before transplanting, the soil to which the plants 

 are to be removed should be thoroughly prepared. 

 Experience in transplanting several millions of plants 

 has taught me that this previous preparation of the 

 soil is very important, not only for the better future 

 growth of the plants but also for greater speed of 

 transplanting. For small or delicate plants that are to 

 be transplanted into flats or greenhouse benches the 

 soil should be sifted through a sie\'e with a medium- 

 sized mesh. With outdoor planting if the area is not 

 large, or the plants are small, the soil should be well 

 spaded or forked over, raked, firmed with a roller or 

 by tramping, and if necessary to obtain results, again 

 forked, rolled and raked. In field planting, trashy 

 stuff or manure should be plowed under, or well 

 disked in. After plowing, the soil should be well 

 disked, harrowed and rolled or planked as may be re- 

 quired to put it in the best condition. If the planting 

 is to be done some time later, the ground should be 

 harrowed weekly to conserve the moisture and pre- 

 serve the texture of the soil. 



If the ground is in ideal condition for planting it 

 will be moist enough to hold its form when squeezed 

 in the hand but not wet enough to pack or bake. Dur- 

 ing dry weather this may be accomplished on small 

 areas by watering and stirring the soil until the right 

 condition is reached. On larger plots of ground where 

 it is not practical to water the whole surface it may be 

 possible to water the rows or hills that are to be 

 planted. If only the surface soil is dry, with plenty of 

 moisture beneath, there is danger that the dry dust 

 will drop into the opening and absorb the moisture 

 from the roots. If not practical to water along the 

 row the dry soil may be scraped aside before making 

 the hole for the roots. 



The plants to be transplanted should be thoroughly 

 watered some hours before being dug so that they will 

 be well filled with water when moved, and so that 

 they will separate with better roots. We find it a 

 great help with most plants to lay them out in a row 

 on the ground, as they are dug, and sprinkle the roots 

 with a Scollay sprinkler or small force pump and then 

 scatter soil over them. The soil sticks to the roots 

 and holds the surplus moisture that will keep them 

 from drying out as quickly. We prefer this method of 

 puddling as it leaves the roots spread out and in a 

 better condition to handle. 



If the plants have become drawn from crowding, or 

 if the tops are out of proportion to the size of the 

 roots the top should be cut back. If the roots are too 

 large to handle easily it may be well to trim them 

 back. 



Plants that have been received from a distance 

 should be nn]iacked at once. Lay them out in rows 



and sprinkle the roots with water and soil as described 

 before. In case they cannot be planted out at once, 

 heel them in until they can be planted. If the plants 

 come with the roots encased in a hard ball or earth, as 

 small potted plants are often received, loosen the soil 

 somewhat by sqeeezing with the fingers, and then 

 sprinkle the roots thoroughly several times, or set 

 them to soak in water before potting up or planting 

 out. If this dry ball of earth is not thoroughly mois- 

 tened before planting, new roots will be very slow to 

 form and the plants will be slow to start into active 

 growth. The following rules should be observed with 

 plants that are to be packed for shipping. Pack 

 so as to keep the tops dry and the roots moist. In 

 warm weather allow access of light and air to the tops 

 if possible. Pack tightly enough that the plants can- 

 not shake about in the package. 



There are a few general principles to be observed in 

 the process of transplanting: The soil should be 

 pressed firmly enough about the roots that they are in 

 close contact with the soil and soil moisture; the hole 

 should be of such size and shape that the roots are not 

 doubled up or bunched in a wad. Alost plants should 

 be set to about the same depth that they were before- 

 being moved. 



Most of my experience in transplanting has been 

 with a trowel. This should be strong enough at the 

 neck to prevent breaking or bending in hard ground. 

 I also flatten out a new trowel and change the "hang" 

 or angle between the blade and handle, to suit my own 

 ideas. Be sure that the edge is sharp and the blade 

 well polished, as this makes a very great difference in 

 the speed and ease of planting. In making the hole, 

 drive the trowel well into the soil, slanting it but 

 slightly. Do not pry the trowel over to make the 

 opening, but draw the whole blade toward you so 

 that the bottom of the opening will be nearly as wide 

 as the top. This allows the roots to drop their full 

 length in the opening. Then take up a plant with the 

 other hand, holding it just above the neck or place 

 where the root and top joins, drop the roots into the 

 opening and hold the plant at the right height while 

 the trowel is being withdrawn. Then with the handle 

 of the trowel or knuckles press the soil up firmly 

 about the roots, giving a slanting pressure that will 

 close the opening the whole depth. If the pressure 

 is placed too close to the plant, only the surface will 

 be firmed and the plant may be snapped ofif at the 

 neck by the downward pressure. The amount of 

 pressure necessary depends very much on the variety 

 of plant and the condition of the soil. 



Every planter has some special way of doing some 

 of the processes, and methods difi^er largely with dif- 

 ferent sections and with the character of the plant. 

 Often in loose soil, the fingers are the only tools used 

 to make the opening for the roots. For larger plants 

 a spade is often used. Practice and common sense are 

 most needed if large quantities of plants are to be set 

 by hand. 



After transplanting, further care is necessary to in- 

 sure a good start. Where it is possible to do so, wa- 

 tering and shading help to establish the plants, unless 

 cloudy or rainy weather prevails. If watering is done 

 at all it should be enough to really reach the roots. A 

 light sprinkle does little but form a crust on the sur- 

 face of the ground which allows more rapid drying out 

 of the soil. If watering is done, stir the soil well as 

 soon as dry enough. W^hen the plant is once estab- 

 lished, cultivation is much more important than wa- 

 tering except in times of e.xtreme drought. — (Read at 

 meeting of Wisconsin Horticulture Society.) 



