230 ELEMENTS OF SYLVICULTUEE. 



seeds in the nursery in furrows in which the soil 

 has been mixed with a large proportion of mould, 

 and well loosened. The seeds must he sown thick, 

 and in extracting the plants a slightly rainy day 

 ought to be chosen. They can be easily removed 

 from the bed by being simply pulled up with the 

 hand, a small trench being previously dug alongside, 

 or they may be cut up and carried away in sods like 

 turf. This latter is the best way of keeping the 

 plants fresh and vigorous, but the soil of the nursery 

 is rendered proportionately poorer by it. 



If the plants have been plucked up, they must 

 immediately be put into baskets, to prevent the roots 

 from drying up. For the same reason, during the 

 process of planting out, only a small number ought 

 to be taken out at a time in the hand. They should 

 be arranged in groups of two or three each, and, to 

 put them into the ground, an instrument resembling 

 a mason's trowel in shape is used with advantage ; 

 with t the hole is made, and at the same time the 

 soil is loosened. It is especially in this method of 

 planting that it is advisable to place flat stones 

 round each group. 



Ball planting was principally commenced in Ger- 

 many. In this method the seedlings most commonly 

 used are of the first or smallest class, which have 

 been transplanted into nursery lines and deprived of 

 their tap root. Small conical mounds from eight to 

 ten inches in diameter, and of the same height, are 

 put in lines regularly laid out. These mounds are 

 composed of mould specially prepared with leaves 

 and grass. They are hollowed out at the top with 



