THE USE OF DYNAMITE IN PREPARING THE 

 GROUND FOR PLANTING. 



Twenty years ago when I first used dynamite to save labor 

 in digging holes for large tree planting, it was not then thought 

 of using dynamite for agricultural purposes and tree planting, 

 but now it has become more popular and is being used in large 

 quantities on many occasions. For the past ten years I have 

 done much planting and dynamite has been used on a 

 large scale with -great advantage for large as well as small plant- 

 ing, and it is indispensible in loosening the ground, especially 

 where it consists of clay or hard shale, and it has proven to be of 

 great benefit to the trees in many ways. In the first place it is 

 very easy to dig a hole after a small amount of dynamite has been 

 used. This will also loosen the ground in the bottom and will 

 give a better drainage to the water which in many cases will stand 

 for a length of time and often the roots turn black and the 

 trees will eventually perish. For small planting half a stick of 

 dynamite will be sufficient but for larger tree planting from one 

 to five sticks will be required, depending on the size of the tree 

 you are to plant and the kind of ground you are working in. 

 For smaller trees and shrubs that are to be planted in groups the 

 dynamite should be placed in holes from three to four feet apart 

 and from twelve to eighteen inches deep. A third of a stick of 

 dynamite will often be enough, this, however, depends on the 

 nature of the ground. If large trees have to be planted, the 

 charge must be regulated accordingly. In setting off a charge 

 it is very important to use a battery as it is easy to do and safe 

 to handle. It frequently happens that a tree planted as a speci- 

 men goes back from its original foliage and color, and this oc- 

 curs not only in planted trees but also in natural growing trees. 

 The reason in most cases is that the tree is starving and is in 

 need of nourishment. It seldom fails to give good results if a 

 trench is made around the tree two feet wide and two feet deep 



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