82 ORMISTOUN'S LETTERS 



Wind. Let me know the numbers and kinds planted in every 

 place. I need not recommend the care of the Fruit trees of all 

 kinds in the Garden. Don't put Crops too near to stifle them 

 in Summer. Let me know if any are gone of which you have 

 not plants of the kind proper for supplying. Will your Mul- 

 berries do or must you have new plants ? Sued up to small 

 heads all the trees upon the old dikes round where the firs 

 were cut that the drops may not hurt the hedges to be planted 

 nor the Trees within. Don't spare black thorn and Bramble 

 plants where you plant new or supply old Hedges. I hope what 

 White thorns you get and plant will be good and strong plants. 

 Do the buds upon the Walnuts look fresh and promise well 

 as yet ? 



I hope you have been very careful in taking up trees with 

 good roots putting of them carefully into the holes without 

 doubling the roots and that you have spread them well out 

 and put fine mould closs to the fibers distinctly and have made 

 large holes so as to give room to extend roots and get strength 

 to enable them to force their way a year or two hence into the 

 solid ground. Saving of trouble in these things has made 

 many of the large Beeches etc. die after standing a year or two 

 from not having had room in the pinched holes to get strength 

 in their roots and so have died when they came to the hard 

 ground where another year's growth to their roots which a 

 larger hole would have allowed of, would have enabled them 

 to force their way. Holes should be broad in proportion to the 

 tree and the broader the hole the more the more the tree will 

 thrive and the harder the ground is naturally the more of it 

 should be loosened by making a broad hole, and for Carrot 

 rooted Trees the deeper the earth should ^ be loosened below at 

 bottom of the hole. 



We shall have more good trees by planting the half with 

 the above care in every particular, than by planting double the 

 number and neglecting care in any one thing. This I have 

 long preached and many a time have I repeated it, and many 

 a tree since I began to plant would have been saved had such 



^ Read, *the deeper should the earth be loosened,' etc. 



