STOCKING THE GKOUND 121 



stout stakes driven in about 6 to 9 inches away from the 

 tree on different sides, and the tree secured to these. 



A rope of straw or a piece of thick matting must be 

 twisted round the stem to prevent the cords from injuring 

 the bark. 



The cord must not be tied tight to the tree, but looped 

 round, so as not to compress the bark too tightly. 



After the tree is properly staked, the remainder of the 

 soil and leaf -mould is filled in and trodden firm, and the 

 turf, if necessary, replaced. 



Notch Planting. 



There are several kinds of notches, the ones mostly in 

 use being the L and T notches made with an ordinary 

 digging spade, and the straight notch made with the 

 straight planting spades and the heavy grubbing iron. 



The L notch is made by inserting the spade to its full 

 depth, withdrawing it, and then inserting it at right 

 angles at one end of the previous cut, making the two 

 cuts in the shape of the letter L. The spade is then 

 levered back, lifting the soil sufficiently to admit the 

 roots of the plant. These should be put well down, the 

 spade withdrawn, allowing the soil to fall back into place, 

 and the plant drawn carefully upwards to the required 

 depth. This helps to straighten the roots. The ground 

 must be trodden firm round the neck of the plant and 

 along the slits. 



The T notch is an adaptation of the previous method. 

 The upright slit is made first, the soil levered up after 

 the cross-slit is made, and the plant placed in the upright 



