December Making Plans 



out in any weather, providing the pruner has no objec- 

 tion. It seems reasonable to suppose that severe frost 

 would do harm to the exposed tissues of the trees, but 

 this does not occur, doubtless because growth is quiescent. 

 It is harmful to defer pruning until signs of growth are 

 apparent, for when the sap flows freely it is liable to 

 exude from the cut surface, and a condition known 

 to gardeners as " bleeding " ensues. Vines are especially 

 liable to bleed when pruning is practised in spring. 

 Though frost may inconvenience out-of-door gardening 

 by restricting work it does an immense amount of good 

 to the land by killing ground pests, keeping trees and 

 plants dormant and " sweetening " the soil. Happy 

 are they whose vacant ground was ridged, or dug and 

 left rough, so that as great a surface as possible is 

 exposed. The frost breaks up the clods and lumps and 

 reduces them to such a state that subsequently they 

 crumble at the touch of fork or spade. While severe 

 frost may do much harm to certain plants that are 

 not adequately protected, its action on other plants 

 and some seeds is beneficial. Those of certain alpine 

 plants germinate better after the pots in which they 

 are sown have been exposed to severe weather. Bulbs, 

 too, seem to grow more rapidly during mild weather 

 following frost. The effect is similar to that obtained 

 by the retardation of roots of Lily of the Valley, Lily, 

 etc. ; after these have been stored in a low temperature 

 for a time they make remarkably rapid progress when 

 placed in warmth. 



Treatment of Frozen Plants. The treatment of 

 plants that may happen to get frozen is a matter of 

 some interest. The temptation is to thaw them as 

 speedily as possible by syringeing with warm water. 

 However, this is really the wrong thing to do, and will 

 almost certainly result in their loss. The object should 

 be to thaw them gradually. This is accomplished by 

 covering them with mats for a few hours and subse- 



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