IG 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



Jan. 



MOVING TKEES. 



There are few places which are ornamented 

 with shrubbery, fruit, and shade trees, where it 

 does not become necessary to change the place of 

 some of them, in order to prevent their standing 

 too thick, destroying a prospect, or injuring some 

 building or plant more valuable than itself. The 

 tree to be removed, however, has been tended 

 with cost and care, and is needed for some other 

 unoccupied place. It has gained considerable 

 size, and the question arises — "How cajj'it be re- 

 moved with certainty of success ?" The common 

 ipode of digging about them, and removing by 

 hand, is a slow, difficult and uncertain one, as the 

 earth in most cases falls away from the roots, 

 leaving them exposed to sun and wind, and injury 

 in conveying it to its place of destination. 



Where a trench is dug about a tree, and the 

 ball of earth is left to be frozen, there is less dan- 

 ger of injury to the roots, or of losing the tree it- 

 self. 



After we have carefully dug about a tree, we 

 need something to aid us in lifting it from its 

 bed and in transplanting it gently to the hole that 

 is to receive it. It cannot be placed upon a cart, 

 or upon a drag, and keep the earth attached to 

 the roots and fibres by which it is to be sus- 

 tained — the motion to get it upon either will 

 usually shake it all off. 



The little, inexpensive machine figured above, 

 it seems to us, would greatly facilitate the labor 

 of moving trees, and at the same time enable us 

 to do the work so as to secure the life of the tree. 



The editor of the Iloriicidtin-ist, from whom we 

 have procured this cut, says "it illustrates a very 



convenient contrivance for moving large trees. 

 The cut almost explains itself. The truck is 

 backed against the tree, the tongue thrown up 

 against the body, and secured by stout cords. The 

 earth is then removed from around the roots, the 

 tongue pulled down by means of the rope attached 

 to the end of the tongue, a team hitched fast, and 

 the tree removed to its new quarters. The truck 

 is placed over the hole in which the tree is to be 

 planted, the tongue thrown up, and the tree is 

 then in just the right position for filling in the 

 earth." 



Most farmers could rig up one of these ma- 

 chines with trifling cost, if, indeed, there were 

 any, because there is usually an old pair of wheels 

 and a cart nib that can be spared as well as not. 

 One machine would answer the purposes of a 

 whole neighborhood, and would undoubtedly save 

 in time, annually, more than its entire cost. 



The wheels and axletree of a common ox cart 

 would answer a pretty good purpose for trees of 

 considerable size, by lengthening the nib, and the 

 forward wheels and shafts of a common light 

 wagon might be made to answer for small trees. 



Rules for Observing the Barometer. — 

 The following rules for observing the barometer, 

 taken from Prof. Silliman's lectures, may aid in 

 making the use of this instrument more clear to 

 many of our readers : 



1. The sudden fall of the mercury is usually 

 followed by high winds and storms. 



2. The rising of the mercury indicates general- 

 ly the approach of fair weather ; the falling shows 

 the approach of foul. 



3. In sultry weather the falling of the mercury 

 indicates coming thunder. In winter a rise indi- 

 cates frost. In frosty weather a fall indicates 

 thaw ; a rise, snow. 



4. Whatever change of weather follows a sud- 

 den change in the barometer, may be expected to 

 last but a short time. 



0. When the barometer alters slowly, a long 

 continuation of foul weather will succeed if the 

 column falls, or of fair weather if the column 

 rises. 



6. A fluctuating and uncertain state of the ba- 

 rometer indicates changeable weather. 



Milk before Calving. — Mr. J. E. Hazelton, 

 of West Newton, has a heifer two years old last 

 spring, which began to give milk about two 

 months ago, and has continued to yield from three 

 to four quarts per day, to the present time, Nov. 

 10th, when she dropped her first calf, which is in 

 fair condition, and likely to thrive. The heifer 

 is half-blood Jersey, and was raised by Judge 

 French. A similar instance occurred in the stock 

 of the editor of this paper, in which case the calf 

 was dropped about four months after the heifer 

 commenced giving milk. 



