The Osier Willow. 281 



distinctive characters arc lost. They differ greatly in habit of 

 growth, hardiness, and qualities suitable for various uses. The 

 kinds suited to a given location can not be known before trial, and 

 those who iiiay engage in this planting will do well to experiment 

 with several kinds before planting largely with any. In starting an 

 osier plantation, it is recommended to obtain the cuttings in the 

 latter part ( f February or tl.e first of March, and carefully kept 

 from drying until ready for use. 



1136. The finest stems should be selected, from the wood grown 

 the year before. The ground is markrd out by cords, and some 

 prefer to run the lines east and west. For the kinds that are to 

 be cut every year, they may be set in rows 18 to 20 inches apart, 

 and for those to be cut every second year, they should be wider. 

 For the white osier and the Caspian willow the space is sometimes 

 30 inches between the lines, and the intervals between are planted 

 with some crop. They should be at about one-third of these distances 

 between in the rows. It is important that the ground should be 

 well shaded, and the plants always grow more uniform when some- 

 what crowded than when wider apart. In more open spaces, the 

 sprouts branch, but the wood is more solid and durable. 



1137. The number of cuttings required for an acre will range 

 from 18,000 to 75,000, and may bo calculated by the aid of a table 

 elsewhere given iu this book. They must be cut smoothly into 

 lengths of ten or twelve inches, and pressed into the soil, the butt- 

 end first, so as to leave about an inch out of the ground. Care 

 must be taken not to peel back the Inirk in setting, and a hole may 

 be made with an old bayonet, or something of the kind, if the 

 ground is a little hard. They should slope at an angle of 45 to- 

 wards the north. 



1138. It is sometimes preferable to set in trenches, and in poor 

 soils to fertilize with leaf-mold, stable-manure, or bone-dust. The 

 manure should not be put in contact with the cuttings, but near 

 them, and it is highly advantageous to irrigate with the soakings of 

 manure during the summer. 



1139. The ground should be kept mellow and free of weeds, and 

 the first cutting, if delayed till the second year, will give a stronger 

 growth to the roots. After the first the cutting may be made an- 

 nually, or on alternate years according to the sizes desired. It 



