The Canadian Horticulturist. ' i'59 



place the tree in the notch. It will thus stand in the exact position as the stake 

 •which marked the hole. 



Fertilization of Blossoms. — That the blossoms of a tree may " set " or 

 become fruit, they must be fertilized with pollen from their own or some other 

 tree. It has long been known, however, that nature abhors self-fertilization, and 

 that she resorts to various modifications of the flower to prevent it, and thus 

 secure if possible cross-fertilization. Bees and other insects flying from flower 

 to flower are the chief agents in distributing the pollen and bringing about cross- 

 fertilization. 



In accord with this many varieties of apples have been found to be more 

 •or less self-sterile — that is, their pollen will not properly fertilize their own blos- 

 soms, although it may be quite potent on the blossoms of some other variety. 

 Recent experiments conducted by the United States Department of Agriculture, 

 have clearly shown this to be the case with many varieties of pears, and even 

 those varieties which are self-fertile were found to bear larger fruit and more of 

 it, when fertilized with pollen from some other variety. 



Trafisplanting. — There is quite a diversity of opinion as to the proper time 

 for planting trees. It may be done in either spring or fall when the tree is 

 •dormant. As a rule, however, planting in early spring is the safest in our 

 •climate. 



If, when the trees arrive from the nursery, it is not convenient to plant 

 them at once, they should be " heeled in " by placing the roots in a trench and 

 covering them with mellow soil, well packed, to prevent their drying out. 

 Never allow the roots to be exposed to the sun or wind any more than can be 

 helped. 



No matter how carefully a tree has been taken up, its roots are always more 

 or less mutilated and broken. All such injured roots and broken ends should 

 be cut back with a smooth cut to sound wood. That a newly planted tree may 

 flourish, it is necessary that a balance should exist between the roots and tops 

 or branches, consequently when transplanting the tops should be cut back to 

 correspond with the roots that remain. 



The hole should be cut wide enough to allow the roots to be extended 

 freely in all directions, and deep enough, that, after a few inches of surface 

 soil have been filled in the bottom, the tree will then stand about the same 

 depth as it stood in the nursery. Spread the roots out carefully in their natural 

 positions and cover them with moist, mellow surface soil. When the hole is 

 about half filled, get in and tramp the earth firmly about the roots. Omitting 

 to do this is one of the most frequent causes of failure in transplanting. If 

 watering is necessary a pailful may then be added, but this is seldom necessary 

 except in a very dry time. The balance of soil being filled in and tramped 

 firmly, a couple of inches on top should be left loose and untramped. This acts 

 as a natural mulch, checking the evaporation of moisture from below. 



{To be contintied.) 



O. A. C. Guelph. H. L. Hutt. 



