180 MINNESOTA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



park and street planting. All such should be selected, but not 

 after the manner usually followed, that of taking- a tree here and 

 there because they are the straightest and best; instead, the whole 

 block of trees should be carefully dug, preserving as many roots as 

 possible, the trees of marketable size put into one group and those 

 remaining sorted into two sizes and prepared for transplanting by 

 having the tops shortened very close and the roots properly cut 

 back, making the scarf on the under side of the root, and then 

 planted in five-foot rows, with the trees two feet apart. These trees 

 are to be grown two years longer, and by giving proper care and 

 attention they will then be of suitable size to be disposed of. 



The great fault with most persons in growing shade trees for sale 

 is that they try to grow too many upon a given spaceof ground and 

 do not transplant often enough. Trees that are to be marketed at 

 one to three years of age will bear crowding; trees requiring from 

 five to eight years of growth inust have not only careful attention 

 but plenty of room in which to develop root and top. I have been 

 in nurseries where they could grow the finest kind of apple or plum 

 trees, but when thej'- undertook to grow shade trees they practiced 

 the neglectful, over-crowded system, and their trees showed very 

 marked effects from such a practice. Many of their trees never 

 could be made salable in the sense of furnishing straight, thrifty 

 stock, and the only remedy I could see without digging the whole 

 block and transplanting would be to cut out all trees of an inferior, 

 crooked, stunted growth, thereby giving the remaining ones a 

 chance to develop — not into first-class stock, for many of those re- 

 maining, do what you may, would never become thrifty and salable. 

 As to the last statement, I won't say that, for it has often been said 

 no matter how poor or stunted the trees are, there are alwaj'S some 

 unsuspecting, ignorant individuals who cannot tell a good tree from 

 a bad one; and I have heard there are men roaming this state 

 over who have 'their cheek always with them who will sell and de- 

 liver anything having the semblance or form of a tree, but I hope 

 there are none such who belong to the Minnesota State Horticultural 

 Society, where we try to teach better principles. 



I cannot bring this paper, already too long, to a close without 

 calling your attention especiall}^ to this one fact, that a tree which 

 has been properly grown froin the seed bed and which has been 

 transplanted every two years for three successive terms is worth 

 much more to purchasers and planter than one which has been 

 grown in the seed bed under the plan of the survival of the 

 strongest. 



One other point I want to emphasize is, that no matter how 

 straight and good looking a tree is that was grown and dug from the 

 forest it will never make the splendid form and growth of the nurs- 

 ery tree that has been properly cared for. Better pay three prices 

 for such trees as I have here described than take forest trees as a 

 gift. In shade tree growing, there is alwaj'S room for the energetic, 

 painstaking, successful men on the top round of the ladder, just the 

 same as in every other kind of business. 



