CHAPTER XXX. 

 PREPARATIONS FOR PLANTING. 



CLEARING THE LAND. 



If the piece of land selected for the grove is covered 

 with timber, one of two plans may be adopted partial 

 clearing or complete clearing. In all cases the latter is 

 preferable, but the former can be made to give good re- 

 sults. 



If it has been decided to plant the trees in a partial 

 clearing, the rows in which the trees are to stand should 

 be cleared out, or the ground should be staked off and 

 a space in the form of a circle cleared where each tree is 

 to stand. This row or space, as the case may be, should 

 be carefully cleared. No roots of the adjoining standing 

 timber should be left in it, but it should be free from all 

 roots to a depth of not less than fifteen or eighteen inches. 

 The timber which stood on the ground may be burned and 

 the ashes returned to the soil, or the larger wood may be 

 saved for firing in some cases, or the wood may be piled 

 and allowed to rot on the ground, while the brush in 

 small quantities may be used as a mulch. All the re- 

 mainder of the standing timber should be cut out not later 

 than the next winter and every precaution must be taken 

 to guard against the newly planted trees being deprived 

 of food and moisture by the native growth. 



In clearing standing timber, wind-breaks should al- 

 ways be allowed to remain. A fifty-foot belt will usually 



