PACKING OF SEEDLINGS FOR LONG JOURNEYS. 303 



way, they may remain fresh and moist, without being watered, 

 for from 4 to 10 days. 



A. The baskets used should be round, with somewhat sloping 

 sides. The first thing to do is to line the inside with moss or fresh 

 green grass and leaves, and then with soft moist soil. Next, the 

 plants should be arranged all round the sides, so that they lie obli- 

 quely, with all their roots meeting in a mass in the middle ; and 

 finally the whole mass of roots, including an inch or two of the 

 stems, should be covered over with soil similar to that in the lining. 

 This soil should be well pressed down so as to leave no air spaces 

 inside. If the plants are to stand a long hot or dry journey, they 

 should be protected with a similar, but deeper basket sown or tied 

 on to the lower basket. Such covers will not only protect the 

 plants from strong light or drought and external injuries, but 

 permit of just enough transpiration and assimilation to keep them 

 healthy and give free ventilation. Before the covers are put on, 

 moss and green leafy twigs may be piled up over the plants. This 

 method of packing is especially suited to delicate plants, particu- 

 larly yearlings and others containing a comparatively small pro- 

 portion of well-lignified parts. Up to 2,000 yearlings may be 

 packed up thus in each basket. 



B. When the plants are tied up in bundles, they may, accord- 

 ing to their size, lie with all their crowns at one end and their 

 roots at the other, or half the plants may be laid one way and 

 half the other way. These two styles of bundles may be turned 

 respectively the single-headed and double-headed bundles. 



The double-headed bundle will be described first, as it is specially 

 suited for the lower categories of middle-sized plants, which are 

 more often transported over long distances than those of a larger 

 size. It is made up in the following manner : Two to four or five 

 withies or pieces of flexible creeping stems or strips of fibrous bark 

 or strands of twisted grass should be laid parallel to each other on 

 the ground, the number of bands depending on the length of the 

 plants to be packed together. Across these bands should be evenly 

 spread twigs of species with tough, not easily detached leaves, or, 

 better still, large firm leaves, like those of Bauhinia Valtlii, Butea 

 frondosa, teak, palms, &c. When twigs or fronds are used, the 

 thick end of the stocks should project beyond the two outside 

 bands ; and when detached leaves are used, they should be spread 

 thickly over a number of thin rods or switches laid parallel to one 

 another and at right angles to the bands. Along the middle wet 

 moss or soft green grass and leaves should be spread. Over all 



