NOTES ON THE VARIOUS SPECIES 255 



age to the trunk. The linden sends out adventi- 

 tious shoots freely, especially if limbs are removed 

 in winter or very early spring. No old wreck 

 which is still alive should be abandoned until the 

 severe pruning method of rejuvenation has been 

 tried. 



Though the wood of the linden is rather frag- 

 ile, the bark is tough, and limbs which are bent 

 and fractured by storms, and yet not quite sepa- 

 rated from the tree, may continue to grow. As a 

 result of this fact, all sorts of queer and erratic 

 formations are constantly being observed in an 

 old linden grove. Many of these spell puzzling 

 cases for the pruner and repairer. The latter 

 must often depend on a free use of tar, for to 

 clean and mend every crack and hole in a large 

 tree would frequently entail almost endless labor. 

 In no case should these minor cavities be merely 

 filled with little dabs of concrete-mortar, as is so 

 often done by enterprising amateurs. In work- 

 ing on the linden the best must often be made of a 

 bad job, frequent reliance being placed upon the 

 tree's capacity for replacing limbs which are so 

 badly broken and twisted that they have to be re- 

 moved bodily. 



Nevertheless, unnecessary wounds should be 

 avoided by carefully bracing valuable trees. In 

 deciding where braces are needed, the weakness 

 of the wood should be kept constantly in mind. 



