CHAPTER XL 



TRANSPLANTING. 



EFORE the work of transplanting begins, the 

 soil for the grove should be well prepared. 

 It is most generally the case that the great hurry to 

 get the trees into the ground causes much neglect 

 at this point, but this policy is a bad one. The 

 haste should have reference to the early fruiting 

 and rapid growth of the tree ; and they are not 

 brought about by careless preparation of the soil. 

 The soil should be deeply and thoroughly broken, 

 and the ground cleared of the roots. To insure the 

 setting of the trees a proper and uniform depth, the 

 ground should be levelled with harrow or drag. 

 No manure should be used at the time of setting, 

 nor before, unless applied some months before set- 

 ting and thoroughly incorporated with the soil. 



The best time for setting trees is the late winter 

 or early spring, before the new wood has started. 

 The ground is then cool, and the roots in as dor- 

 mant condition as at any time during the year. It 

 is better that the ground should be wet and the 

 setting followed by showers. But wet soil is not so 

 essential at this time of the year as it is when the 

 transplanting has been done later and the ground 



