26 Planting of Trees. 



PLANTING OF TREES. 



As many people advocate the planting of trees in the fall, I wish to give 

 my experience in that direction. 



Last fall, I wished to set a number of apple-trees of the Ben Davis and 

 Wagener varieties ; and, as I did not have them of a sufficient size to suit me, 

 I sent to a neighbor nursery-man and bought them, — a hundred and fifty 

 Ben Davis, and fifty Wagener. About one-fourth of these trees were set 

 last fall \ and the rest were taken to a hillside, and buried root and branch 

 with earth, — the roots about a foot deep, and the tops but lightly. These 

 trees came out of the ground in the spring in good condition, and were set 

 early, and have made a fine growth during the present season : the loss, I 

 think, was but five out of a hundred and thirty-five. But, of those that were 

 set last fall, nearly all died ; and the balance were killed nearly or quite to 

 the ground. 



The cause of so great a loss of the fall-planted trees is attributable to 

 the extremely dry winter that followed. The ground was very dry when 

 the planting was done ; and, the drought continuing through winter, the dry 

 air and dryer ground absorbed all the moisture from root and branch. 

 Even trees standing in the nursery were lost by the thousand from the same 

 cause. 



I am an advocate of procuring nursery-stock in the fall ; but it is much 

 the safest to bury it till spring, and then plant early. Trees treated in this 

 way can be kept through the winter in much better condition than if left in 

 the nurser}'. And then the man who procures his trees in the fall has the 

 advantage of his more tardy neighbor who waits till spring, and takes the 

 cullings of the nurser)', and consequently a much poorer class of trees, and 

 probably at the same price. Ira Phillips. 



Keosauqua, Io., Aug. 24, 186S. 



