METHODS OF NURSERY WORK. 97 



base blocks, and when filled they are laid flat on the top of 

 the open track, allowing the roots of the plants to hang freely 

 and with sufficient space between them for the development of 

 fibrous roots, while there is no doubling and twisting as in the 

 case of hand-laying. 



The soil removed in opening the trench for the plants is then 

 turned back with the spade and lightly trodden with the foot. 

 The laths are then withdrawn in a lateral direction, and part 

 quite easily from the plants. The expense of hand-laying and 

 laying with the lath works out exactly the same, but the plants 

 produced by the lath system are much superior to those pro- 

 duced by hand-laying. 



It will be seen that with the aid of the lath the roots are 

 allowed to retain their natural position, consequently they 

 develop evenly on all sides and form a close, compact, fibrous 

 root-system. When plants thus raised are planted out in the 

 open by means of the semi-circular planting spade the same 

 natural position is retained. 



It is principally owing to the destruction of roots that we get 

 so many crooked and short-stemmed trees with branchy crowns, 

 which are so similar to those which have been dwarfed and 

 deformed through injury to their roots caused by the action of 

 a pan. 



17. Nursery and Plantation Competition. 



The Nursery and Plantation Competition of 1914 was held in 

 the Border district, at the Highland and Agricultural Society's 

 Hawick Show, and embraced the counties of Berwick, Peebles, 

 Roxburgh and Selkirk. This was the third Competition of the 

 kind held under the auspices of the Society. The first Com- 

 petition, in 1 91 2, covered a representative portion of the Midlands 

 of Scotland, while the second Competition, in 1913, included a 

 representative area in the West, and the 1914 Competition 

 covered an area representative of the Border district of Scotland. 



In order to classify the subjects entered in these Competitions, 

 it is necessary that the Judges should be supplied with statistics 

 concerning the history and management of the competing 

 subjects, especially in the case of plantations. The result of 

 this is that much information of great value is collected in the 

 various districts, and by the time a complete round of the 



VOL. XXIX. PART I. G 



