THE LIFE OF THE TREES «7 



youth. The tree stands decked in its canopy of leaves, 

 every one of which is ready and eager to assume the re- 

 sponsibiHties it faces. The season of starch making has 

 opened. 



Cut some twigs of convenient trees in winter. Let them 

 be good ones, with vigorous buds, and have them at least 

 two feet long. You may test this statement I have made 

 about the storing of food in the twigs, and the one about 

 the unfolding of the leafy shoots. Get a number of them 

 from the orchard — samples from cherry, plum, and apple 

 trees; from maple and elm and any other familiar tree. 

 Put them in jars of water and set them where they get the 

 sun on a convenient window shelf. Give them plenty of 

 water, and do not crowd them. It is not necessary to 

 change the water, but cutting the ends slanting and under 

 water every few days insures the unimpeded flow of the 

 water up the stems and the more rapid development of the 

 buds you are watching. When spring comes there are too 

 many things that demand attention. The forcing of 

 winter buds while yet it is winter is the ideal way to dis- 

 cover the trees' most precious secrets. 



