PilACTICAL FOUBSTKY. 



remarkable, and in all cases amply pays for tne increased 

 labour and expense bestowed on the fence. 



It is well to plant rather above than below the general 

 ground level, so that in trenching the soil a slight mound 

 may be raised along the intended line of fence, which will 

 not only materially assist in keeping the plants from 

 excessive moisture, but aid in the cleaning and general 

 management of the hedge. Where superflous moisture is 

 present in the soil the hedge-and-ditch system is to be 

 recommended, which consists in digging out a ditch parellel 

 by the line on which it is intended to place the fence. It 

 should be 3 ft. deep, 5 ft. wide at top, and 1 ft. at bottom, 

 and the soil removed in so doing is thrown upon that side 

 where the hedge is to be planted, thus forming a mound, 

 or rather ridge, on which the plants are to be placed. 



In wet soils such a ditch is indispensable, but, under 

 ordinary circumstances, it is to be condemned, and for the 

 simple reasons that it is expensive and rather against 

 than in favour of the free growth of the fence. 



Thorn or Quick. The best time to plant the whitethorn 

 is just after the fall of the leaf in the autumn ; but the 

 operation is usually extended from that time until earfy 

 spring, though in the latter case perhaps with less satis> 

 factory results. 



In selecting the plants a great amount of care is 

 necessary, as well, indeed, as in the lifting and after- 

 planting. Four-year-old plants are best suited for hedge- 

 formation, and they should be stout of growth and 

 well-rooted. The size of the plants is of more importance 

 than the age, and those with stems as thick as one's 

 finger are to be preferred to others of greater height, but 

 lank and small of stem. Frequent transplanting whilst in 

 the nursery-border should have been paid attention to, 

 as then the roots are bushy and fibrous and well suited for 

 planting out permanently. 



Great damage is usually done to thorn plants by careless 

 lifting, and, worse still, by bundling the plants in hundreds 

 ready for the planter. This should never be tolerated, as it 



is quite evident that, when tied up in bundles and covered 



170 



