66 THE LARCH. 



held, as I have never personally seen any bad results 

 arise from planting in autumn, provided the plant 

 was ripe, although the ground was somewhat dry. The 

 growth of the larch often continues far into autumn, but 

 nothing serious has ever happened even by planting it 

 before the top shoot had fully ripened its foliage. 

 The larch is very sensitive, and cannot endure being 

 planted in a wet or cold soil. There is less risk of 

 the plants perishing in cold soil with a northern aspect 

 during spring than autumn; but although this cala- 

 mity may be avoided for one season, it by no means 

 follows that it may be so successfully overcome the 

 next. Larch frequently survives the first and even 

 second season only to die the succeeding one, therefore 

 too much regard need not be paid to its apparent early 

 success. All dry and sandy ground, when it would 

 be unsafe to plant in March, should be planted in 

 October or November. Care should be taken, as already 

 advised, not to insert the root of the plants deep, and 

 in order the better to avoid deep planting, the turf 

 usually requires to be pared off. 



If the ground is moorland, and the soil thin and 

 inclined to wet, no plants over 9 to 12 inches high 

 should be planted, and sometimes two-year seedlings 

 are to be preferred to all others. It is the stem of the 

 plant that suffers, even more than the roots ; therefore 

 care and pains should be taken to secure for the 

 plantlets a congenial site and soil suitable for both. 



Considering the short distances apart at which 

 many of the English proprietors planted their larches, 



