PLANTING AND TRANSPLANTING 37 



premature starting of the buds in the spring. Nursery stock may be 

 placed in temporary nursery rows, either by keeping the plants tied in 

 original bundles as taken from the packing boxes, or by taking the 

 individual plants from each bundle and heeling them in separately. 

 The latter method is the safer and is the one to be adopted if plants 

 are to remain in these temporary nursery rows for a period longer than 

 ten days or two weeks. When stock is "heeled-in" in bundles, a 

 special effort should be made to get the fine topsoil worked into the air 

 spaces among the roots of the plants in each bundle. Permitting the 

 air to reach the roots in the middle of the bundle because this precau- 

 tion is not taken, is one of the most frequent sources of injury. The 

 best method to adopt to be certain that fine soil is worked in among the 

 roots is to thoroughly water the plants when they are "heeled-in" 

 and to make sure that the water leaves no roots suspended in air. 

 When individual plants are placed in temporary nursery rows, where 

 they are to remain for a period longer than three or four weeks, they 

 should be spaced not closer than twelve inches, or even farther apart 

 for the larger shrubs, to eliminate injury from crowding as soon as the 

 new growth begins (See Plate VI). 



ROOT PROTECTION AND PUDDLING. The important object in trans- 

 planting is to transfer the plant to its new position in such a condition 

 that growth will immediately continue as nearly normal as possible 

 when growing conditions become favourable. Growth is first excited 

 and maintained by very fine, fibrous roots, almost thread-like in 

 character, which attach themselves to the soil. It is this fine root 

 growth which is so sensitive to injury from drying-out processes, and 

 which must be protected against the sun's rays, and also from the 

 effect of wind. A dry wind will work greater injury to plants which 

 are left uncovered during any unnecessary length of time than will a 

 bright sun on a moist day. 



It is often necessary to transplant material under exceedingly un- 

 favourable conditions, due to wind, or sun, or when plants have 

 advanced in leaf growth. Under such circumstances it is advisable to 

 "puddle" the roots at the time when the plants are removed from the 

 temporary nursery rows, and before they are planted permanently. 

 "Puddling" consists in dipping the roots of the plants in a basin 

 hollowed out of the soil and filled with a molasses-like mixture of loam 

 and water. This "puddling" process leaves a coating of mud over the 

 fine roots and prevents excessive drying out until the material is planted. 



