ESSAY ON PEAR TREES. 107 



■within eight or ten feet of each other. In planting the tree, a hole 

 should first be made from twelve to twenty inches deep, depending 

 upon the character of the subsoil, and of width sufficient to embrace 

 all the roots without turning them in. The roots of the tree to be 

 planted should be carefully examined, and all defective or bruised 

 ones cut off smoothly, and the tap root, if long, should be severed. 

 The tree should then be carefully inserted in the hole, and good fine 

 loam carefully packed in around the roots, care being taken to press the 

 earth under the roots so as to leave no vacuum The roots should be 

 spread out horizontally, and great care taken to cover with very fine 

 earth the little fibres from the roots which are essential to the nour 

 ishment of the tree. The tree should not be shaken or pressed down 

 after the dirt is filled in around it, as the effect is to injure and break 

 off the fibres. No manure should be put into the hole with the roots, 

 as in dry weather it heats and burns the roots so as to cause the tree to 

 blight. Care also should be taken not to set the tree too deep, as it is 

 oftentimes fatal. The depth of the nursery is generally sufficient. 

 After the tree is set out, particularly if done in the autumn, the earth 

 should be pressed down around it gently, and the tree surrounded, 

 to a height of twelve or fifteen inches, with a conical mound of earth. 

 The mound serves better than stakes to support the tree, and is also 

 a protection against the frost. The earth should remain until the tree 

 gets firmly rooted, when it may be levelled down. It is always inju- 

 rious to leave the earth in the autumn so as to form a basin around 

 the trunk of the tree for the water to collect in and freeze. Trees 

 are very frequently winter killed by being so left. 



There seems to be a diversity of opinion among pear growers, as 

 to the best season of the year for transplanting pear trees. Some 

 prefer the autumn, while many prefer the spring. Downing prefers 

 the autumn for light and loose soils, and the spring for heavier land. 

 His view is, that trees set out in the fall get rooted before winter, and 

 are some weeks more forward in the spring. These views are more 

 suited to the climate of New York and New Jersey, than of Massa- 

 chusetts. For I apprehend the experience of pear growers in 

 this region will show that the tree when set out in the fall does not 

 put out any new roots before the winter sets in. Manning in his 

 work on trees, says, "The impression that fibres will form in the 

 autumn from newly set trees, is common, but I have never witnessed 

 it." Cold weather sets in in this State so soon after the leaves fall 



