20 - 



about the care of the trees, so much the better. Be sure to give him the 

 opportunity. 



The time for transplanting trees varies with the locality and the sea- 

 son. Trees should be moved before they have budded and blossomed, 

 for after the leaves have opened they can not obtain sufficient nourish- 

 ment from the newly planted roots, and after sapping the life from 

 the tree, wither and die. 



In considering how the transplanting is to be done we must remember 

 that a tree is a thing of life, that it can not be removed from its place 

 of growth and set in another place without interfering for a time with 

 the regular operation of its vital forces. For this reason the trans- 

 planting should be done at a season when the vital forces are least 

 active, and care should be taken to avoid as much as possible all injury 

 to the roots of the tree, both in taking it up and in resetting it. The 

 time between the two operations should be as short as possible, and 

 during the interval the roots should be entirely protected from both sun 

 and wind by covering them with damp moss or dipping them in a thin 

 mud made by mixing rich soil and water, and then wrapping them in a 

 coarse damp cloth or canvas. If the removal and resetting can*be done 

 on a cloudy day, so much the better. Not even the fine, fibrous rootlets 

 should be allowed to become dry. It would be well if the hole could be 

 prepared in advance for the reception of the tree. Let it be broad 

 enough to receive the roots without any bending or cramping. It may 

 better be too broad than too narrow and a little deeper around the mar- 

 gin than in the center. It would be better if deep enough, that it 

 receive a layer of rich garden soil or leaf mold three or four inches thick 

 on which the tree may stand. A pile of similar soil should be ready as 

 soon as the tree is put in position to sift over its roots and pack down 

 upon and between them. Settle this soil still more about the fibrous 

 roots by giving it a copious sprinkling with a watering pot. Finally, 

 fill the hole with soil and cover the surface with a layer of manure, to 

 act as a mulch and keep the soil moist about the roots. Put no manure 

 in the hole nor in contact with the roots. Plant no tree so near the 

 schoolhouse that in after years it will unduly shade the windows and 

 darken the schoolroom. Do not plant the trees too close to each other. 

 Give them an abundance of room to form broad, well shaped heads. 

 Before taking up the tree to be transplanted, it is well to cut away any 

 slender, feeble, irregular or superfluous branches, in order to reduce the 

 head to good shape and to diminish the demand that would otherwise 

 be made upon the roots for support at a time when they are not able 

 to supply the usual amount of moisture and nourishment. 



