70 THE BOOK OF FORESTRY 



which canses the tiny seedlings to wither just above 

 the ground and is extremely fatal. 



Hardwood forests are started by planting the seed in 

 long drills and the next spring these year-old seedlings 

 are planted in the field. Nut-bearing varieties may be 

 started directly in the field by punching a hole with a 

 cane and inserting the nut where the tree is wanted, 

 the chief difficulty in this case being that hungry 

 squirrels may follow along the lines and eat up nearly 

 all of the buried nuts. By far the largest amount of 

 planting is done with evergreen species on account of 

 the value of the timber and the ease with which the 

 little trees can be raised and planted. Hence a descrip- 

 tion of how pines and spruces are grown will be more 

 interesting. 



Having selected the site with plenty of water avail- 

 able, beds are made ordinarily four feet wide and from 

 twelve to one hundred feet long. A bed four by twelve 

 feet was used almost entirely by the early nursery- 

 men, so it will be used as the unit of measure for amount 

 of fertilizer, seed, etc. 



The ground must first be well pulverized and a couple 

 of barrels of well rotted leaves and the same amount 

 of old manure to each bed is spaded in and thoroughly 

 mixed with the soil. Plants are like boys, and if they 

 are to make fast growth they must be well fed. 



The beds are then made, being slightly raised 'above 

 the ground and with the center a little higher than the 

 sides. This is to insure drainage, for the little trees 

 cannot stand wet feet. In some commercial nurseries 

 each bed is surrounded by a wire screen to keep out the 

 birds and squirrels. 



After the bed is made it is sown with from six to 

 ten ounces of seed, depending upon the species. Ordi- 



