ifa 



of Agriculture 1949 



needs of the program. A soil conserva- 

 tion plan is needed so as to retain and 

 improve fertility and prevent erosion. 

 Terraces and drainage should be put 

 in where necessary. It is wise to make 

 several maps and keep them up to 

 date: A topographic and soil map of 

 the nursery; a plan that shows all 

 permanent features; and a map, to be 

 prepared each year, that shows the 

 current use of each unit or part of a 

 unit, including treatment of the soil, 

 species of nursery stock on it, and age 

 class. The maps serve as a record of 

 stock produced and are a year-to-year 

 record of soil management. Permanent 

 roads that divide the plots into work- 

 able units should be established. 



BUILDINGS vary in number, kind, 

 and character with the climate and lo- 

 cation of the nursery in relation to 

 labor and other services. 



In some climates, trees can be grad- 

 ed and packed for shipment as they are 

 dug. 



Where the digging season is short or 

 the weather is unfavorable, stock must 

 be graded and packed under shelter. 

 In some climates, where the planting 

 seasons do not coincide with the nur- 

 sery seasons, cold storage is needed to 

 hold nursery stock when it is out of the 

 ground, and a well-designed building 

 that has facilities for sorting, packing, 

 and storage of nursery stock is essen- 

 tial. In mild climates, a simple shelter 

 and a temporary heeling-in bed usually 

 are enough. 



The superintendent, or nursery fore- 

 man, should reside on the grounds so 

 as to be always within reach. On a 

 large nursery, houses may be desirable 

 for other yearlong personnel. The op- 

 erations of a nursery demand 24-hour 

 attention; neglect at critical periods 

 may mean loss of trees. Sometimes a 

 dormitory and mess hall are necessary 

 for laborers. Besides the quarters for 

 personnel, buildings are needed for of- 

 fice, laboratory, storage of equipment, 

 seed extracting and cleaning, and for 

 repair work. The repair shop should be 

 designed to handle all but major re- 



pairs to equipment. Usually the office 

 and laboratory can be in one building, 

 which should be placed so that visitors 

 will go there first for a proper welcome 

 and an introduction to the work that is 

 being carried on in the nursery. 



IRRIGATION is necessary to the pro- 

 duction of good plants in most nur- 

 series, although some species can be 

 grown without irrigation in regions 

 where precipitation is adequate for 

 farm crops. 



Ordinarily, an overhead sprinkler 

 system is used for the irrigation of coni- 

 fers. Usually this consists of runs of 1- 

 to 1 1/2 -inch pipe up to 500 feet in 

 length and 50 feet apart, with spray 

 nozzles at 3-foot intervals, and sup- 

 ported on posts 2 to 6 feet above the 

 ground. Water coverage on both sides 

 of each pipe is obtained as the pipe is 

 rotated from side to side by a water 

 motor or oscillator. Other systems em- 

 ploy revolving sprinkler heads on up- 

 right pipes at intervals of 40 to 60 feet. 

 The installations may be fed by perma- 

 nent underground or portable surface 

 pipes. 



The quantity of water and the meth- 

 ods of applying it (especially to coni- 

 ferous seedlings) strongly influence the 

 quality of the stock. During the ger- 

 mination period, the seedbed must be 

 kept moist but not saturated. An even 

 distribution of water during the grow- 

 ing season results in a uniform growth 

 of plants throughout the seedbed. The 

 quantity of water needed varies with 

 the soil, climate, and age class of the 

 stock being grown. Under similar cli- 

 matic conditions, a light, sandy soil de- 

 mands more water than a heavier soil. 

 First-year seedlings require more fre- 

 quent light waterings than older stock. 



LAND cannot be cropped repeatedly 

 without measures to maintain its pro- 

 ductivity. Nursery stock returns noth- 

 ing to the soil because the trees are 

 removed, root and branch. Nutrients 

 are taken from the soil faster than they 

 become available naturally. Nursery 

 stock can be grown satisfactorily for 



