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AMERICAN FORESTRY 



best in the spring. From the 15th of August to the 15th 

 of September is another period when white pines may 

 be planted, but the spring is preferable. In seedling 

 rise they may be obtained from any of the nurserymen 

 advertising in the AMERICAN Forestry Magazine. As 

 for instructions, we might suggest the following: 



As soon as the trees arrive, the bundles should be 

 untied and then immersed in a pail containing water mixed 

 with soil. The bundles should then be "heeled in" 

 which means placing them in the ground temporarily 

 until they can be set out in their proper places. In 

 "heeling in" the individual bundles should be slanted 

 with their tops toward the South. A cool, shady spot 

 is preferable for "heeling in" purposes. At no time 

 should the plants be exposed to sun and wind and they 

 should always be kept moist. The plants should then be 

 set out in the field at a distance of about six feet apart. 

 I f it is larger trees that your question refers to, they may 

 be obtained also from any of the nurserymen mentioned 

 in the advertising pages of this magazine. 



Q. I have a large farm near here and am anxious 

 to plant it to nut trees, if they will do well, as I believe 

 I can make more profit out of it in this way, though it 

 is good farming land. Can you advise me as to what 

 trees it would be best to plant, if any, or what your 

 feeling would be in the matter. Also, I would like to 

 know if there is any branch of the Agricultural Depart- 

 ment through which I could get some young trees cheaply, 

 or would it be best to purchase them from some nur- 

 sery here? E. H. J., Detroit, Mich. 



A. If you lived in Indiana or Virginia, your planting 

 of nut trees for profit would be experimental, but liv- 

 ing on the northern edge of the Northern belt, for most 

 nut trees the location is such that nut growing is entirely 

 experimental, with the chances against any great suc- 

 cess. It will be interesting as an experiment, but almost 

 hopeless from a commercial standpoint. I believe in the 

 development of the native nuts of any region more than 

 the introduction of exotic species. There is a human ten- 

 dency to want to grow cocoanuts in snow banks, and to 

 overlook, or even despise, the ordinary fruits that grow 

 wild and familiar all about us. I am perfectly frank in 

 advising you in this matter. 



Regarding the nursery stock, cedars, pines, beech, 

 maples, etc., there is no branch of the government de- 

 partments through which these could be secured, and 

 I should advise your securing them from some first- 

 class nursery in Detroit, or one. of those which you will 

 find advertising in this magazine. Let me warn you. 

 however, to be particularly careful about the buying of 

 white pine seedlings. You will note in our February issue 

 an illustrated article telling of the blister rust with which 

 white pines are threatened. This is a serious menace. 



1. Q. What criticism have you to make of a list of 

 suggested shade trees for street planting in New York 

 State composed of the following: Oriental sycamore, 

 sugar maple, Norway maple, Occidental sycamore, tulip 

 tree, sweet gum, cucumber tree, silver maple, and Ameri- 



C. S., Tarrytown, N. Y. 



A. 1 would revise the list as follows: Oriental syca- 

 more, Norway maple, red oak, European linden and 

 ginko for general planting in cities. There are other 

 trees, like the pin oak, red and sugar maple, suitable for 

 the more suburban districts. We have omitted the Occi- 

 dental sycamore because it does not grow as rapidly and 

 compactly, and it not as free from disease as the Oriental 

 species. The silver maple is too short-lived and too much 

 subject to insects and disease to deserve consideration for 

 general planting. The tulip tree and sweet gum require 

 more moisture and rich soil than the average street can 

 supply. The cucumber tree is not a street tree as far 

 north as New York. 



2. Q. I can get rhododendrons cheaply from Holland. 

 Shall I purchase them in preference to nursery-grown 

 stock? J. B., Oyster Bay, L. I. 



A. Nursery-grown stock is always preferable to that 

 grown abroad, and planted out immediately upon arrival 

 to this country. 



3. Q. Don't you suppose that it would be better to 

 purchase nursery stock rather than transplant wild stock ? 



K. S., Albany, N. Y. 

 A. Nursery grown trees and shrubs are better fitted 

 for transplanting than those grown in the field or wood- 

 land. In the nursery, the plants are root pruned or 

 transplanted at frequent periods a process which de- 

 creases the long top root characteristic of the wild plant 

 and develops large compact fibrous roots which help 

 the plant to take to the new soil more readily. 



4. Q. What kind of fertilizer shall I use for the 

 trees set out last spring and when shall I apply it? 



M. J. K., Philadelphia, Pa. 

 A. Use well rotted stable manure, preferably two 

 years old. Apply now, though the fall would have been 

 preferable. 



ADVICE FOR MARCH 



1. Prune fruit trees. 



2. Prune fall blooming shrubs, but not the early flow- 

 ering shrubs, or you will lose their bloom. 



3. Before the leaf buds burst, spray for the San Jose 

 scale with oils on badly infested trees and with lime sul- 

 phur on all fruit trees, whether infested with scale or 

 not. Use oil at rate of one part oil, fifteen parts water. 



4. Look for San Jose scale not only on all fruit trees, 

 but also on lilac, Japanese quince, flowering dogwood, 

 mountain ash and elm. Spray with oils. Obtain specific 

 advice by submitting a sample of the insect to the State 

 Agricultural Experiment Station or to the office of 

 American Forestry. 



5. Remove and burn the cedar apples from red cedar. 

 These produce the "scabby" or imperfect fruit on apple 

 trees. 



6. Spray silver maples with miscible oils for the cot- 

 tony maple scale. Do not use oils on sugar maples. 



7. Begin preparations for planting. Order your trees 

 and shrubs from the nurseries if you have not already 

 done so. Have your rich soil in readiness, and see that 

 all the tools and accessories for planting are in good order 

 for an early planting season. 



