FOREST SEEDS, SEEDLINGS AND CUTTINGS. 35 



drained spot of ground, and cover with sand, decayed straw or other 

 litter, and keep them there frozen and moist. When it is time to sow 

 the next spring, see that the seeds are not exposed to the sun's heat. Sow 

 them so the plants will be self-shading, and yet thin enough for vigorous 

 growing. 



THE NUT SEEDS. 



The nuts of the oaks, walnuts, butternuts, chestnuts, hackberry, bass- 

 wood, larch, fir, and the like all ripening in the fall should be gath- 

 ered soon as ripe. Some may be worm-eaten; test them and other seeds 

 in water; the sound ones sink; or, put some at random on a hot shovel; 

 the sound ones turn over and go "tick-tack." In such ways the proportion 

 of good and bad seeds may be ascertained. Dry as described. Mix with sand 

 and keep in the dry cellar at about thirty degrees above zero. Plant in 

 the late fall where you want the trees to stay. Spring planting is safe 

 if the seeds are allowed to freeze where they will not dry up. Succor 

 the young seedlings. 



PULP SEEDS. 



Use similar methods for seeds of cherries, buffalo berries, cranber- 

 ries, and others of like constituency, also of pears and apples. Fall 

 planting recommended. For fall planting, a good way is to put the seeds 

 at the beginning of winter under inverted sods, or freeze awhile in a 

 box of moist dirt, then remove to the cellar, being careful that they do 

 not dry out there. In the spring expose to warm suns till they just "bo- 

 peep" from their shells; then plant, properly shading while young and 

 tender. 



HARD-SHELLS. 



The heavier and larger seeds of all species of flora produce the best 

 plants. Such seeds as the juniper, locust, white cedar, hawthorn, Ken- 

 tucky Coffee Tree, etc., are difficult to sprout. They need the freezing 

 and thawing of winter in its utmost rigor. For spring planting pour 

 boiling water on them, and as it gradually cools, let them remain in it 

 about an hour or more, or until some of the seeds have swelled out. These 

 "elect" should be immediately planted in moist soil and kept moist for 

 sprouting with certainty. Treat the still more refractory to a like dose. 

 The red cedar seeds are harder to manage. The alkali of potash seems 

 to be the most effectual for such. 



Some seeds, the haw for instance, may be mixed with bran-mash and 

 fed to sheep or cattle, and the droppings planted. Being softened by 

 digestion they are thus fitted for sprouting ; the same with seeds that 

 birds swallow. 



SEEDS THAT DO NOT KEEP WELL. 



Seeds of the poplars, willows, elms, birches, soft maples, etc., lose 

 their power of germination soon after ripening in the early summer, and 

 should, therefore, be planted at once. It is unprofitable to try to raise 



