CONSIDERATIONS REGARDING MULCHING. 29 



cultivate some delicate garden favorites, which had given him a 

 good deal of trouble before he tried it. Although he was not 

 prepared to take the ground with some that mulching is more 

 beneficial than a coat of manure, he expressed the opinion that it 

 is of great value, especially to the fruit and ornamental tree 

 grower. 



In 1850 an experienced horticulturist reported that he used spent 

 tan to spade into his stiff clay soil, with good success ; also as a 

 mulching for strawberries, pear trees, and shrubs. It was free from 

 mouldiness ; and roots struck in it readilj', especially runners of the 

 strawberry. 



Mulching, with buckwheat straw, pear trees that were set after 

 being long out of the ground and very dry proved successful, 

 when similar trees not so treated did not recover. 



An orchard of six hundred apple trees, which had been planted 

 four or five years, and had seemed to be checked in growth, was 

 mulched four inches thick for about four feet around each tree with 

 coarse fresh meadow hay aud buckwheat straw ; the effect was a 

 good stimulation of vigorous growth, ample bloom, and enormous 

 crops of fruit. Moss, which had begun to gather upon some of the 

 branches, peeled up and dropped off, while the whole appearance 

 of the orchard was entirely changed. 



With strawberries the same writer had excellent results, using 

 spent tan bark, applied two inches thick, after New Year's, to a 

 strawberry bed that had been previously covered with asparagus 

 haulm, and was not suflSciently protected from frost. The plants 

 were being lifted b}- the alternate freezing and thawing, but the 

 tan bark prevented further injury and gave good success. 



A writer in 1851 advocated mulching trees with any suitable 

 material as far as their branches extended ; also mulching of 

 dahlias with soft spongy meadow or swamp moss. With the same 

 tubers planted side by side, and having the same treatment other- 

 wise, the moss-mulched dahlias far outgrew and outbloomed the 

 others. 



The same kind of moss was used to mulch flower seed beds. 

 With these the plan was to prepare the soil nicely and sow the seeds 

 as usual, covering them with the damp moss, aud put a flower- 

 pot or seed pan over them, watch them carefulh', aud when the 

 seeds germinated, to lift the pan little by little, until the plants 

 acquired color and strength, when the moss was removed. This is 

 the plan now generally adopted for the successful germination of 



