PLANTING AND TRANSPLANTING PALMS 241 



charged with such important business. The Canary palm is simply 

 beautiful, and acts as though it were aware of the fact which is not 

 a fault in a plant-beauty. 



Planting Palms. Young palms can be transplanted without taking 

 earth with the roots if they are not to be subject to long exposure, 

 but the percentage of success will depend upon the care taken. Mr. 

 H. E. Butler of Penryn has succeeded notably in this way: Dig a hole 

 considerably larger than the base of the palm. Break up the lumps 

 and mix the dirt with manure, or complete fertilizer and old leaves, 

 fine grass, etc., for humus. Fill the hole with the mixture, pack it 

 down, then dig out enopgh dirt in such a way as to leave a cone, in 

 the center of the hole, with its point level with the ground, and flat- 

 tened for the palm to rest on. Then spread the roots evenly over the 

 sides of the cone and pack the rich fine earth over them. The packing 

 is important, to prevent the plant from settling with the dirt if un- 

 packed. The palm cannot thrive if any part except its roots is under- 

 ground. Failure follows setting the plants too deep. Even if such 

 plants live they fail to grow well. 



Transplanting Large Palms. Large palms can be moved success- 

 fully with few roots if abundant watering is done to keep the large 

 trunk from drying out; therefore water should be applied freely to the 

 trunk. Palms are very easy to move because they have rope-like roots 

 which hold a ball of earth together. It is not likely to break and fall 

 apart as in the case of moving other trees. Trench around the plant 

 with a sharp spade so that the inside of the trench shall be a foot 

 or more (according to size of plant) from the base of the palm. Go 

 down a foot or two feet (according to size of plant, again) and then 

 cut under with the spade, until the plant stands in a loose ball of earth. 

 Lift out, with tackle if necessary; settle the earth in the new place with 

 water and keep moist. Remove a good part of the leaves before 

 moving. 



Growing Palms from Seed. Canary date palms and California fan 

 palms grow very readily from the seed; the former particularly so, 

 and in fact often volunteers if the ground under the tree happens to 

 be kept moist. No treatment should be necessary except to keep con- 

 tinuously moist, but not wet. To put in ordinary soil in full sunshine 

 and water once in a while gives an alternation of dry and wet which 

 does not give good results. Try the seed in a place of half-shade, 

 cover only a little with light, sandy loam and cover above with a thin 

 litter of leaves and sprinkle frequently, but not too freely, and you 

 ought to get palm seedlings freely. Better methods for handling palm 

 seed are those described in Chapter VII for seeds generally. 



Trimming-up Palms. There can be no question that palms are 

 made lanky and unthrifty by too free trimming up of the old leaves 



