MARCH] THE NURSERY. 273 



GROUND-HEDGES. 



The best method of planting a hedge on a level, or without a ditch, 

 is to plough a slip of ground on each side of the intended line of 

 fence the preceding spring, and having previously dunged it, to plant 

 it with potatoes, taking the ordinary care to keep it free from weeds 

 during the period of their growth. In autumn, the potatoes being 

 removed, the entire slip should be ploughed deep, gathering it up 

 towards the centre, and in October or March, having your quicks 

 previously raised in the nursery, as directed in that department in 

 February, to the height of two or three feet, take up the plants care- 

 fully without injuring their roots, prune off the extremities of the 

 roots and any long straggling shoots of their tops, then plant them 

 in a trench made along the centre of this slip of ground for their re- 

 ception, at the distance of from six to eight inches from plant to 

 plant, and settle the earth well into their roots ; observing, previously 

 to planting, to match the quicks; that is, to plant all the larger 

 sized together, for it is improper, as before observed, to intermix the 

 small and large, as the former would be smothered by the latter, 

 which would occasion injurious and unsightly breaches in the fence. 



If you have plenty of quicks, it will be of advantage to plant a 

 double row at the distance of a foot from each other, in which case 

 the plants may be set ten inches apart in the rows, placing those of 

 one row directly opposite the intervals of the other. This method I 

 would prefer to the former. 



The quicks must afterwards be protected from cattle by palings or 

 some kind of dead fences, till they arrive at a proper growth, not to 

 be injured thereby; and for the two first years kept perfectly free 

 from weeds ; for without these precautions it will be in vain to plant 

 them. 



The quicks being tolerably close planted, will need no annual top 

 clipping to thicken them ; but it will be very proper to shorten occa- 

 sionally any extraordinary vigorous top shoots, so as to keep them, 

 all pretty equal, and also such as branch out too much at the sides. 

 However, it would be very advisable to give a slight dressing to the 

 sides every October or March, for a few years, with a pair of hedge- 

 shears, which may be done in a short time, narrowing the hedge a 

 little towards the top to afford the benefit of the air, rain, and dews 

 to the lower side shoots ; this will encourage their growth, and cause 

 the hedge to be well furnished from bottom to top. 



When a hedge of this kind is to be made, it might be the most 

 convenient way to plant it within a few feet of some established post 

 and rail fence, and erect another as many feet from it on the oppo- 

 site side, each at such a distance as would be sufficient to keep off 

 cattle; here it would be effectually protected until arrived at a proper 

 height and strength, when both these ranges of palings might be 

 taken away to answer similar purposes ; but again and again would 

 I suggest the necessity of keeping the plants free from the annoy- 

 ance of weeds during the first two or three years of their growth, 

 after which they will be completely furnished and out of their power. 

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