THORN HEDGES AND THEIR MANAGEMENT. 6 1 



9. Thorn Hedges and their Management. 



By W. H. Whki.LENS, Conilongon Nursery. 



Collection and Storage of Sekd. 



The hawthorn or " quick " is a very common tree in all parts 

 of the country, and there is generally very little trouble in 

 securing enough seed for the nursery, even in a poor seed 

 year. 



The haws should be collected as soon as they are ripe, 

 which is generally in September or the beginning of October. 

 They should then be mixed with sand and put into a heap ; this 

 being to help the outer covering to rot off, while the sand 

 prevents the haws from heating, and so impairing the germinative 

 powers of the seed. They should be kept thus for fourteen or 

 fifteen months, or until the second sowing season from the 

 time the seed was collected ; and during this period the heap 

 must be turned about once a fortnight. When sowing time 

 arrives, the heap should be put through a fine sieve, to 

 separate the sand from the seed. The sand and seed are 

 sometimes sown together, but it is better to separate them, 

 as the sower can then see better how thickly he is sowing 

 the seed. 



Sozvi/ig. — Seed such as hawthorn should be sown in drills, 

 each drill being about 4 inches wide, with 6 inches between 

 the drills. The seeds must not be sown too thickly, because 

 many of them will not germinate till the second year, and 

 if the seed is sown too thickly, the seedlings that come up in 

 the first year will suppress the younger ones, or prevent them 

 from appearing at all. 



The depth at which the seed should be sown is about 

 half an inch. There should not be more then 6 drills in one 

 bed, as it is difficult to hand-weed the bed if it is more than 

 3 feet wide, and a path between the beds, about 18 inches 

 wide, must be left for this purpose. Hand - weeding must 

 be done carefully, so as not to displace the young plants or 

 the dormant seeds. 



Li/ling out. — At the end of the second year, the 2-year 

 seedlings should be carefully lifted, and the soil firmed down 

 round the younger seedlings, but the latter must stand for 



