THE ART OF THE SECOND GROWTH 



Nuts germinate slowly; hence malting or better repeated 

 sprinkling with liquid manure advisable; many nuts lie over, even 

 for two years. Nuts thoroughly dried lose germinating power. 



Malting or " pre-germination " advisable. 



In the ease of Hickory and Walnut, the following recipe for 

 pre-germination is given: 



"Make a ditch three feet deep and wide; put nuts in the 

 ditch to a depth of one foot; fill ditch with water up to top of nuts; 

 then add a slight cover of straw; then dirt; then horse manure. 



" In this ditch the nuts are kept until planting time ; the nuts 

 will germinate a few weeks after planting (in May)." 



Plant seedlings one or two years old, or else nuts, on plowed 

 ground. Cultivating advisable. 



Late frost is avoided by the late formation of shoots. Early 

 frosts are bad, if seedlings did not have time to lignify owing to 

 late germination. 



Avoid planting on open ground; shade is endured readily for a 

 number of years. Straggling plantations often develop after natural 

 or artificial reinforcing with other species. 



Yoimg plants suffer from mice. Damaged seedlings should be 

 coppiced down. 



In Ilicoria minima, growth is quicker to begin with than in 

 Shagbark. 



At twenty years, however, Shagbark catches up. 



W^ood much poorer than in Shagbark (more brittle). 



Hicoria glabra is more modest as to soil than Shagbark 

 Hickory, and more sensitive as to frost ( ?). 



Hicoria alba is more sensitive than Shagbark; same rate of 

 growth; does well in the Westerwald, badly in river valleys. 



Paragraph XXXVIII. Results of planting ex- 

 periments with American softwoods. 



A. Pinus divaricata: Very modest. iStands frost and 

 drought and does not suffer from Hysterium. " 



Root system tap-rooted, many fibred. 



Height growth very rapid, several shoots per summer. 



2 years old, 8 inches high. 



5 years old, 5 feet high. 



8 years old, 10 feet high. 



Game and hares handicap it; still there is strong reproductive 

 power. 



103 



