410 THE BOOK OF THE LANDED ESTATE. 



SECTION 12. The Transplanting of Forest-Trees. 



The transplanting of trees is at all times against nature, and they 

 receive a check, more or less severe, even when the operation is suc- 

 cessfully carried out. It is, however, often found desirable to remove 

 large trees to sites devoid of timber as, for instance, when a landed pro- 

 prietor is about to erect, or has erected, a mansion on some commanding 

 portion of an estate, and this site most probably has many good advan- 

 tages to recommend it, but in the grounds around it there may be a 

 want of large trees, which are indispensable to adorn the estate. The 

 late Sir Henry Steuart of Allanton introduced a system of transplanting 

 large trees, and carried it out very successfully in his own grounds at 

 the time. 



This was done by digging "a trench round the roots of the tree, and 

 allowing fibres to form for some years before the tree was removed. It 

 was afterwards removed on a common janker, consisting of two large 

 wheels on an axle, and having a long pole or shaft attached to the 

 centre of the axle, upon which the tree was taken to the site in a recum- 

 bent position, with the branches on the ground. 



Mr Mackay, gardener to Edward Strutt, Esq. of Kingston Hall, near 

 Derby, built a tree-transplanting machine with four wheels, which raises 

 the tree up in an upright position. 



Mr M'Glashan of Edinburgh invented a transplanting" machine, which 

 in my opinion is a very useful apparatus, as the tree can be lifted with 

 a large ball of earth attached to the roots, without much injury being 

 done to it. A number of strong iron spades are first driven into the 

 soil at a certain distance from the stem in proportion to the size of the 

 tree. These spades work inside of an iron frame which lies on the 

 surface. The upper portion of the spades is then so worked away from 

 the stem of the plant as to throw a pressure on the lower portion of 

 each towards each other. A strong wooden truck on wheels is then 

 placed on the top over the spades, and the tree can be raised out of the 

 earth with a large ball attached, as contained within the spades. It is 

 raised by means of strong screws, which require a few men to work 

 them. 



With respect to Mr M'Glashan's machine, the ' Book of the Garden' 

 says : 



" The most powerful and perfect of all such machines is, however, 

 undoubtedly that invented and patented by Mr M'Glashan, who has 

 favoured us with the following description and drawings of it, figs. 118, 

 119. 



