320 SATURDAY IN MY GARDEN 



trenches will probably be found clay, or at best hard, unyielding 

 soil. This should be broken up with a fork, and the better soil 

 then filled in on top. The surface of the ground should be left 

 rough, so that the late autumn frosts and rains may work upon 

 the soil to the fullest advantage. The frost following upon the 

 rain will reduce even the hardest lumps of soil to such a condition 

 of friableness that when later it is desired to break them up they 

 will yield to very little effort. 



It is not necessary to apply manure to the ground at this stage 

 of the proceedings. The less chance there is of rank stable 

 manure coming in contact with the tender roots of the trees when 

 they come to be planted the better it will be for their future 

 welfare. Manure should only be supplied as a surface dressing 

 after the work of planting has been completed, or its use may even 

 be postponed till spring. 



The methods of planting recommended by the most successful 

 growers are worth studying. It is not sufficient to dig a deep hole, 

 as if one were about to erect a telegraph post, push the roots in an 

 inextricably mixed mass a foot below the surface, cover them 

 thickly with manure, stamp it down, and pile up the soil round the 

 stem and press it close in the belief that at any rate the tree has 

 been firmly planted. This method can only end in disaster. The 

 first year after planting, the tree may produce a few leaves, and 

 less fruit, but thenceforward its decline and demise are assured. 



First of all, the roots of the tree should be spread out so that 

 some idea may be gained of their extent. Then a hole sufficiently 

 wide to receive them should be prepared. Shallow planting is 

 better than deep planting ; the hole, therefore, should not be 

 made too deep In the case of a three-year-old apple-tree this 

 need not be more than eighteen inches. 



The depth to which the tree should be planted can be ascer- 

 tained by examining the base of the stem. Here will be found 

 the mark which will show how deeply the tree was planted in the 

 nursery, and it may be taken as a good rule in replanting not to 

 sink the stem more than an inch lower than it was before the tree 

 was dug up from the ground. 



