38 



Journal of Agricultural Research voi. xxii. No. x 



On September ii, 1914, the season's growth of stem and needles was 

 obtained by measuring every tenth plant in each lot, or 100 in each unit. 

 The terminal buds of 500 plants in each lot were examined as to their 

 maturity on this same date. Buds having a definite form, of a deep 

 brown color, and covered with a protective coat of fine hairs were classed 

 as mature. Plants without a single well-defined bud and those whose 

 growing point had a tender green color, without the coat of hairs, were 

 considered of immature development. For purposes of comparison, data 

 similar to the foregoing were obtained from 2-year-old western white 

 pine plants from a representative area of seed bed. These plants were 

 of the same age and seed lot as the nine transplanted units, differing 

 only in that they had been allowed to remain in the seed bed. These 

 data are given in Table II. 



Table II. — Growth and development of western white pine during the first season in the 



transplant bed 



Date of transplanting. 



Lot 



No. 



Average 



seasonal 



stem growth. 



Average 

 seasonal 

 growth of 

 needles. 



Percentage of 



plants with 



mature 



buds. 



Percentage of 



plants with 



immature 



buds. 



Apr. 24 



May I 



9 



20 



30 



June 12 



19 



30 



July 14 



Not transplanted . 



Inches. 



0-757 

 729 



763 



734 

 825 

 874 

 918 

 974 



951 

 063 



Inches. 

 0.934 

 952 

 897 

 424 

 566 



570 

 611 



715 

 943 

 131 



80.0 

 75-7 

 75- 1 

 69. I 

 70.1 

 69.6 



56.4 

 80.6 

 92. 6 

 93-5 



20. o 

 24-3 

 24.9 

 30-3 

 29.9 



32-4 



43-6 



19.4 



7-4 



6.5 



By average growth of stem and needle is meant the growth for the 

 entire season, regardless of whether that growth took place in the seed 

 bed, in the transplant bed, or in both. Needle measurement was made 

 in the middle of the sector of currently- grown stem. 



Table II brings out the following points : 



1. The later the transplanting after the buds open, the higher the stem 

 growth for the season. It appears that height growth practically ceases 

 for a time after transplanting, the plant's energies being directed toward 

 getting established in its new habitat. In other words, the height 

 growth is roughly proportional to the length of time the plant is left in 

 the seed bed. Hence, plants that were not transplanted made a higher 

 stem growth than any of the transplanted lots. 



2. The longest needle groAvth at the end of the season had been made 

 by the first and last lots (Apr. 24 and July 14). The needle growth of 

 the first lot had been made entirely in the transplant bed and was accom- 

 panied by a deep green color, but that of the last lot had taken place in 



