234 SEEDING AND PLANTING 



The nursery superintendent is responsible to the administration 

 for the production of the stock desired at the time when wanted 

 and at reasonable cost. His entire time is given to the work in 

 large permanent nurseries. Even in small nurseries and tem- 

 porary nurseries one man must be held responsible for all nursery 

 operations. When the magnitude of the work does not justify 

 the continuous services of a superintendent, an arrangement 

 should be made whereby he is also placed in charge of planting or 

 woods work of various kinds. The superintendent should make 

 an inventory of all stock in the nursery at least once each year, 

 preferably in August, as a basis for autumn and spring distribu- 

 tion. The inventory should show the number of plants of each 

 species as regards age, size, quality, and whether seedlings or 

 transplants. A second inventory should usually be made in the 

 spring in order to show the surplus stock and serve as a basis for 

 the area of new seedbeds of the various species necessary to keep 

 the nursery adequately stocked. 



6. The Execution of Nursery Operations in Reference to 

 Order and Time 



There is no other calling more exacting than the nursery busi- 

 ness in the order in which the many operations are performed 

 and in the time of their execution. A delay of two weeks 

 in spring transplanting may cause a loss of 50 per cent in the 

 transplant beds. Sowing the seedbeds ten days earlier in the 

 autumn than they should be sown may induce autumn germina- 

 tion and cause the total destruction of the young plants by winter 

 killing. Because of the exacting nature of the business, nursery 

 practice on an extensive scale demands a well-considered working 

 plan, a carefully arranged budget, and a complete set of nursery 

 records. A cost-keeping system should be established in which 

 all the expenditures incurred in the different projects are charged. 

 As most forest nurseries collect and deal in forest tree seed as well 

 as planting stock the various projects which call for separate cost 

 tabulations are usually as follows: 



I. Forest tree seed: 



a. Collecting. 



b. Cleaning. 



c. Purchase. 



d. Sale and distribution. 



