170 



ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL HORTICULTURE 



planting-board and hold the trees. The 

 man or boy who operates the planting- 

 board after adjusting the stakes for the 

 first hole, goes on to the second, adjusts 

 a second pair of guide-stakes, returns with 

 the board to the first hole, allows the 

 other boy to locate the tree, and then he 

 pulls up the guide-stakes and takes them 

 with the board to the third tree-stake. 

 While he is back at the first tree the hole 

 is being dug at the second position and 

 by the time he sets the guide-stakes for 

 the third position it will be time to locate 

 the tree in the second position. The boy 

 who holds the tree while it is being 

 planted gives it a shake with an up-and- 

 down motion to get the soil scattered 

 among the roots, and when about half 

 the soil is in, he firms it with his feet. 

 He then goes after another tree and 

 leaves the man who does the filling in to 

 give the final treading and to leave a 

 loose layer of soil on the surface. The 

 holes are dug just large enough to ac- 

 commodate the roots. Under the best 

 conditions, that is, where there are few 

 stones and where there is nothing to 

 impede the progress of the workmen an- 

 other boy may be advantageously used to 

 bring the trees as they are required. If 

 two gangs are working on different rows, 

 one boy may supply trees to both gangs. 



The important point about planting is 

 to get fine moist soil firmly packed 

 around the roots so as to avoid large air 

 spaces. No fertilizer should be put into 

 the holes when the tree is planted. It is 

 not well to plant when the soil is wet, 

 for handling it in this condition spoils 

 its physical properties, and a baked soil 

 is the result. 



Deptli 



Apple trees should be planted at about 

 the same depth as they stood in the nurs- 

 ery row or probably one or two inches 

 deeper. 



C. D. J.\Rvis. 

 Storrs. Conn, 



Fonr-Man Squad 



Four men make an effective squad. One 

 man prunes and distributes the trees. 

 Another places the tree in proper position 

 by sighting on the stakes in both direc- 



tions, and compacts the soil around the 

 roots of the trees as it is filled in by the 

 two shovellers. Their duties are to re- 

 move whatever soil may be necessary for 

 the reception of the tree roots and to 

 shovel the soil back in around the tree. 

 The surface soil should be placed in con- 

 tact with the roots rather than the sub- 

 soil. Given a man who can sight accur- 

 ately, the alignment of the trees in both 

 directions will be close enough for all 

 practical purposes. 



\ViLLi.\M Stiart. 



Burlinston. Vt. 



Depth 



How deep to plant a tree is another 

 question that comes up every once in a 

 while. Many apple growers claim that 

 the trees planted should not be any deep- 

 er than they were in the nursery row. 

 Others pay no attention to this idea. Ac- 

 cording to results at the station along 

 this line there is no material difference in 

 the growth of trees that are planted at 

 the depth that they were in the nursery 

 row and trees that have been planted for 

 two or three or even six inches deeper. 

 In a general way we will say that trees 

 may be planted two or three inches deep- 

 er than they were in the nursery row if 

 desired. 



Irrigation 



Immediately after the trees have been 

 transplanted they should be irrigated. If 

 the trees have been planted in the small 

 trench, as suggested below, they can be 

 irrigated through it. If they have not 

 been so transplanted they will have to 

 be flooded. Where water is expensive and 

 where it is desirable not to irrigate the 

 middles between the trees the best way 

 is to plow a trench about a foot or two 

 wide and plant the trees in the trench and 

 irrigate them from it. This method we 

 find very economical and very easy. It 

 is a good idea to examine the trees about 

 a week after they have been irrigated the 

 first time, as sometimes the soil settles 

 quite a good deal and some of the roots 

 may be exposed to the air. 



F.1BIAX Garcia, 

 Santa Fe. N. M. 



