PROCEEDINGS OF THE FARMERS' CLUB. 363 



year. I entirely eschew tin or iron spouts, for one of them driven through 

 the bark of a tree hurts it more than a half-inch hole six inches deep. But 

 most people balk on this point. They don't mind wounding the outside of 

 «. tree; they think it can stand an indefinite amount of that, but they are 

 very cautious of penetrating too deep, being fearful of touching the heart 

 or some other of the vitals of a tree, not knowing that the vegetable econ- 

 omy is the reverse of the animal in this respect; that the vitality of a tree 

 is upon the outside; that a worm running around it under the bark is sure 

 death to a tree, while trees may fourishfor a century with the heart entire- 

 ly rotted out." 



Maples by the Roadside. 



What a profitable beauty, or beautiful profit, it would be to have our 

 roadsides generally planted with sugar-maples. When they came into 

 bearing condition, the population of most parts of the country could not 

 begin to consume the sugar that could be easily and cheaply made from 

 them, to say nothing of the beauty, diversity and shade. 



The failures of transplanting maple and other forest trees result oftener 

 than otherwise from bad selection. A majority of men in the country, 

 should they be guilty of setting a tree at all, would know no better than 

 to go into the old woods and select a tall, symmetrical (in the woods), a 

 small tree — not young, as it would most likely be from thirty to fifty j^eara 

 old — and chop off all the roots not easy to dig, which would be nine-tenths 

 in such a situation, set it out indifferently, and never water it, and then, 

 ■when it comes to die, as soon it must, get discouraged at tree planting. But 

 to succeed in transplanting forest-trees, we should find those that are young 

 as well as small, that have vitality and plenty of roots, near home. And 

 these can only be fcnmd in partial openings, or on the borders of forests; 

 and when procured from such situations, and of such character, I know the 

 rock or sugar maple, that "divine tree of the American forest," to be per- 

 fectly hardy to transplant. It is best, however, to do it just as the buds 

 are opening in spring, as, if done earlier, or in the fall, the sap will run 

 from the wounded roots, and likely weaken the tree. 



Manure. 



" Will the Farmers' Club tell me whetlier it is a settled question whether 

 strawy stable manure is benefited or damaged by undergoing fermentation 

 or heating in the heap ? I have the past winter kept my cattle tied up in 

 the barn all of the time except one or two hours per day, watering but 

 once, water being distant. Having plenty of straw and other rough fod- 

 der, I have fed it to them very freely, letting them take what they liked, 

 not expecting or desiring them to eat more than three-fourths of it, and lit- 

 tering them with the rest, letting all accumulate for a fortnight or until I 

 began to bump my head against thojscaft'olding pretty badly, then throw 

 out all that is wet, and begin again. I have thus got a fine heap of ma- 

 nure that smelled as it was going out as if it might be good for something. 

 At any rate, I believe it much better than if the same straw had been thrown 

 in the yard to be wet with snow instead of by the cattle, as is almost uni- 

 versally practised here. And my cattle, too, never before wintered so well 

 on like fodder. But I have been in a quandary all winter as to whether I 



