PROPAGATION OF TREES AND SHRUBS FROM SEED. 153 



lings until thej- had made the second oi' third rough leaf, when the 

 shade could gradually be dispensed with. 



The White and Scarlet Maple, the Elms, and Betula nigra ripen 

 their seed in early summer, and should be sown in freshh' prepared 

 beds as soon as gathered. At this time of the year the weather is 

 often quite warm and dr}', therefore these summer-sown seeds 

 should be carefull}'^ attended to as regards watering, and possibly 

 liglit shade should be given. Where a large amount is planted, 

 and no screens are at hand, birch brush laid thinly over the bed is 

 a great help. If well taken care of they will malie plants from six 

 to twelve inches high the same season. I would sa}', before going 

 further, that my rule is alwa3's to cover seed sown out of doors 

 in an}' ordinar}- loamy earth a little more than their own diameter, 

 and if \Q\y light and sandy nearly twice as deep, but if the soil is 

 a cla}', as lightly as possible ; and it maizes no difference whether 

 broadcast or in drills. I know there are a few trees whose seed 

 will come up if covered quite deep, but they are exceptions, not the 

 rule. 



The Magnolia should not be sown out of doors in this climate 

 before the 20th of May, as it does not do well if sown when 

 the ground is cold. The H0II3' {Ilex opaca) is the slowest to 

 germinate. Treated like other seeds, a few — say one in a thou- 

 sand — will come up in the first year, a few hundreds the second 

 3'ear, and the remainder the third year. Such has been my experi- 

 ence. The Black Alder takes two 3'ears. 



Such seeds as those of Magnolia, Rose, Mountain Ash, Cra- 

 taegus, Celastrus, Euonymus, and Viburnum, which are inclosed in 

 a flesh}' pericarp or pulp, where space is of account, and also 

 for convenience of sowing, I macerate in water at seventy or 

 eighty degrees for one or two weeks, when they may be washed 

 out and sown before they are thoroughly dr}'. This often helps 

 germination, and more in the magnolia than an}' other plant I 

 know. If the magnolia is sown when gathered, there is an oil in 

 the pulp that surrounds the seed, which, as soon as it begins to 

 rot, seems to penetrate the seed and make it rancid. I have fre- 

 quently noticed that of the seed of the magnolia, that was not 

 washed clean, few germinated ; the pulp, in rotting, so soured the 

 soil that it became full of fungus, which damped off" many of the 

 young plants, necessitating their removal to fresh soil to save 

 them ; while of those washed and sown under the same circumstances 

 all came up and grew well. Of course this may not occur ia 



