1914 KIM ITS OF ONTARIO. 15 



where only the hardiest kinds are grown, tweny-five feet will be found quite sufficient. 

 It is wise to allow plenty of space, so that there will be no crowding when the trees 

 have reached their full size. Planting too close is a far more frequent and serious mis- 

 take than planting too far apart. 



A plan quite frequently adopted, particularly in some of the large American orchards, 

 is to use some of the small-growing early-bearing varieties as fillers between the large- 

 growing varieties. The Duchess, Ontario, and Wagener, for example, are planted alter- 

 nately with large growing kinds, such as Baldwin, Greening, and Spy. 



In such cases, the large-growing kinds are set at the maximum distance apart, and 

 the smaller kinds between them. By the time the larger kinds begin crowding, the 

 smaller ones will have paid for their keep and that of the others, and can be cut out 

 to make room for the larger trees. The greatest objection to this plan is the danger 

 that the fillers may be left so long before they are removed that the value of the whole 

 orchard may be impaired. 



There is a diversity of opinion as to the best time for planting, although it may 

 be done successfully any time when the tree is dormant, either in the spring or autumn. 

 In favorable localities and with hardy varieties it may be done quite as well one season 

 as another, but for general planting the spring is the safest time in our rigorous climate. 



The trees should be planted in rows as straight as it is possible to make them. 

 Straight rows add not only to the appearance of the orchard, but to the convenience 

 of cultivation. One of the best means of getting the rows straight is to stake out the 

 position for each tree before beginning to plant. 



Great care should be taken to prevent the roots of the trees drying while they are 

 out of the ground. If it happens to be hot and windy at the time of transplanting, it 

 is a good plan to puddle the roots in soft mud as soon as they are taken from the pack- 

 ing box or trench, and in carrying the trees about the orchard it is well to keep the 

 roots covered with a wet blanket or piece of old carpet. 



The hole for the tree should be wide enough to hold the roots without cramping 

 or crowding, and should be deep enough to admit of a few inches of fine mellow sur- 

 face soil being filled in the bottom, and still have the roots an inch or two deeper than 

 they were in the nursery row. The roots should be spread out in their natural position 

 and should be covered with moist mellow surface soil. It is well, in digging the holes, 

 to have the surface soil placed at one side and the subsoil on the other, so that in re- 

 filling, the surface earth may be placed next the roots and the subsoil left for the top. 

 If the soil has been properly prepared it is seldom necessary to water the roots at the 

 time of transplanting, but care must be taken to ensure the soil moisture from below 

 coming up to the roots. This may be done by tramping the earth firmly as soon as the 

 roots are well covered, and leaving only the top soil untramped to act as a mulch and 

 retain the moisture below. The neglect of this firming of the soil around the roots is 

 one of the most common causes of failure in the transplanting of trees. If watering 

 is necessary, a small pailful poured in as soon as the roots are nearly covered, is of 

 more use than a half dozen on the surface after the planting is finished. 



All torn, bruised, or injured roots should be cut back, with smooth cuts, to sound 

 wood. Smooth cuts callous over quickly and new roots are the more readily sent out. 

 Trees obtained from the nursery, no matter how carefully they may have been taken 

 up, have lost the greater part of their root system, and in order that they may make 

 a satisfactory growth when transplanted the top must also be cut back to a similar 

 extent to restore the balance. This cutting back, however, can be most satisfactorily 

 done after the trees are planted, when they are held firmly by the soil, and more care- 

 ful attention can be given to shaping the head of the young tree. Closely associated 

 with the heading back of the top at the initial pruning of the tree, is the question of 

 determining the height at which the head should be formed. On this, as in many other 

 points of orchard management, there is a variety of opinions. Some prefer high heads, 

 because of the greater convenience for cultivation and working underneath ; while others 

 prefer them low, because of the greater convenience in pruning, spraying, and harvest- 



