374 SEEDING AND PLANTING 



More or less controversy exists as to whether autumn or spring 

 is the preferable season for planting. On the whole, deciduous 

 trees are better adapted for autumn planting than those which 

 hold their leaves over winter. Localities subject to late frosts 

 should be planted in late spring; so also heavy, stiff soils and ex- 

 posed places should be planted in the spring. On the other hand, 

 light soils and well-sheltered sites may often be advantageously 

 planted in the autumn. 



The chief objections to autumn planting are as follows: 



a. The trees are liable to be thrown by the frost. 



6. They are subject to injury by the wind. 



c. On heavy or overwet soils the roots are liable to decay. 



Where the soil is subject to alternate freezing and thawing 

 during the winter months, its contraction and expansion force 

 the recently set plants out of the soil. In many localities this is 

 the most serious objection to autumn planting. 



Autumn winds, if high, may seriously injure recently planted 

 trees by swaying them back and forth. This may so loosen them 

 in the soil that autumn root growth is checked and they become 

 dried out during the winter. 



The chief advantages of autumn planting are the extension of 

 the planting period and the formation of new root growth during 

 the late autumn. Plants set in the autumn start earlier and 

 make more rapid growth the first season. In order to attain these 

 results autumn planting of deciduous species should be done imme- 

 diately after the leaves are cast, and evergreen species should be 

 planted but little later. This will give opportunity for new roots to 

 start and for the trees to become settled in the soil before winter. 

 In high altitudes and on other sites where the buds expand 

 and the leaves appear almost as soon as the frost is out of the 

 ground, autumn planting is usually preferable because of the 

 shortness of the spring season suitable for planting. So also 

 autumn planting is often desirable for species that start their 

 growth very early in the spring, as is the case with elm, maple, 

 larch, and poplar. As a rule, the only excuse for autumn planting 

 is when operations are conducted on a large scale and the neces- 

 sary planting cannot be completed in the spring. 



