360 TRANSACTIONS OF THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE. 



which by being frequently cut, will, in a short time, grow a cover- 

 ing as close as could be desired, so much so indeed that it would 

 be impossible for a small bird to penetrate it. 



If it is desirable to plant a hawthorn hedge it is well to know 

 that it is impatient of much wet resting near the roots, and ought 

 never to be planted at the sides of ditches that have much stag- 

 nant water in them. The common method of planting quicks on 

 the borders of ditches is in most cases, a bad practice ) for what- 

 ever the nature of the soil may be, from the effects of the Aveather, 

 and numerous other causes, the mould on their sides is constantly 

 crumbling off', and leaving the roots of the plants exposed and with- 

 out support. I planted many thousand quicks two years since on a 

 plain surface without raising any bank, by digging out a spit of 

 earth with the spade, in which I placed the plants against the 

 side of the trench, at the distance of about nine inches apart, 

 and covered them with the mould taken from a short distance off", 

 and finished by treading it closely to their roots. I then placed 

 the earth that came out of the trench close to the plants, and 

 left it loose that the same might penetrate more easily. I did 

 not apply any dung for the reason that it is apt to breed insects, 

 which are particularly injurious to the roots of young quicks. 

 Quick set hedges are very beautiful to the eye, and if the climate, 

 depth and quality of the soil be such as to throw out a vigorous 

 shoot, and good attention be paid to them in their infancy, they 

 will prove themselves less expensive than any other fence ; and 

 at the end of fifteen years, will yield a sufficient produce if 

 cut down and plashed to pay all the expenses incurred in the 

 first making ; and this cutting may be continued every fifteen 

 years without injuring the stocks. 



In the management of old hedges, many diff'erent methods are 

 employed. Where they become stunted, from the badness of the 

 soil in which they happen to be planted, or other causes, the best 

 mode of recovering them is to cut the plants of which they are 

 composed down close to the ground in the early part of spring, 

 keep them entirely free from weeds, manure them with lime 

 and ashes, and treat them as above directed. When the young 

 buds begin to shoot out, rub them all off" with the hand, except 

 two of the strongest, which are best located for shoots : as where 

 the whole number are permitted to grow, they become weak and 

 restricted in their growth as in the former case. For the want 

 of attention to this, I have seen hedges completely spoiled. 



