45 [ 175 3 



On the culture of the White Mulberry Tree* 



All the practical writers on this suhject, agree that the proper soils 

 Tor tlie mulberry tree arc dry, sandy, or stony; the more stony the 

 better, provided the roots of the trees can penetrate among them. 

 The situation should he high: low, rich, and moist land, never produce 

 nourishing leaves, however vigorously tlie tree may grow. They are 

 always found to be too watery. 



The modes of propagation are, 1, by seed; 2, grafting; S, budding; 

 4, layers; 5, cuttings; G, suckers. 



1. The ripe fruit may be sown in di-ills in ground previously pre- 

 pared; or the seeds may be washed out of the pulp, and mixed with 

 an equal quantity of sand or fine mould, and then sown. They should 

 be covered about a quarter or Ixilf an incli deep. The seeds will soon 

 vegetate if the ground be rich, and will live through the winter, un- 

 less the cold should be unusually severe.* In that case, they should 

 be covered with straw or long manure: in the course of the next sea- 

 son thin the plants, so that they may be a foot apart. Seeds intended 

 to be sown in the spring, or to be kept, should be washed out: for 

 they are apt to heat or mould if allowed to remain in the fruit. Every 

 tiller of land knows the fertilizing effects of frost and snow; the land, 

 therefore, destined for the spring sowing, should be dug or plouo-hed 

 in the preceding autumn, • left rough all winter, and harrowed or raked 

 fine as soon as the season will permit, and the seed sown in drills. 

 The young plants must be watered in dry weather, and weeds careful- 

 ly kept down. Weeds will not only stint the grov/th of the plants, 

 but cause diseases in them, which may affect the future vigor and health 

 of the tree. When a year old, some of them will be fit to plant in nur- 

 sery rows; the same plants may reinain in the seed bed a second year, 

 and then be transplanted; the plants at two feet distance from one an- 

 other, that there may be room for cleansing and dressing the ground. 

 At transplanting, cut off some of the roots, especially those that are 

 ragged or decayed, and the tap root, to force out lateral roots; and also 

 the tops, at six or seven inches from the ground. In France, they 

 transplant just after the fall of the leaf in the autumn. When the 

 plants in the nursery are sprung, strip off the side buds, and leave 

 none but such as are necessary to form the head of the tree. The buds 

 which are left, should be opposite to one another. \i the plants in the 

 nursery do not shoot well the first year, in the month of March fol- 

 lowing cut them over, about seven inches from the ground; this will 

 make them grow briskly. They should also be walerfid with diluted 

 barn-yard water. 



When the plants are grown to the size of one inch in diameter, plant 

 them out in the fields where they are to remain; make the holes six 

 feet square, and dress the ground two feet round the plants; 

 (rim the roots, and press the earth on the roots as the holes are filled. 

 During the first of planting out, leave all the buds which the youno- 

 trees have pushed out on the top, till the following spring, when none 



* A quantity of plants from sec<S thrrs treslcd, lived tliroiierh the cold wintc" 

 'if 1825- 6, in PhiladeJphi:!. ' o ^ 



