A HANDBOOK FOR EUCALYPTUS PLANTERS. 17 



or three weeks before planting, the seedlings can be hardened and made 

 more woody by curtailing their water supply, though it should not be 

 withdrawn enough to stunt them. 



Transplanting. If the 1,000 seeds planted in each box germinate and 

 grow well they will begin to crowd each other when the seedlings are 

 about two inches tall. When this condition obtains it should be relieved 

 by pulling out all but 100, which should be left evenly distributed in 

 each box. Those removed should be transplanted in other boxes. 



In removing them from one box to another the roots of the seedlings 

 should not be exposed to the air too long. Eucalyptus seedlings are 

 not so tender as those of conifers, however, and will revive after con- 

 siderable hardship. 



Immediately after being transplanted the seedlings are likely to wilt 

 slightly. If watered freely and shaded well for a few days, however, 

 they will revive, unless the roots have been killed by exposure during 

 the operation. To avoid this it is advisable to transplant on a cloudy 

 or foggy day. 



Protection of Nursery. The damage to nursery stock caused by birds 

 and small rodents can be controlled by preventing them from effecting 

 an entrance to the lath house. Ants, however, are likely to invade the 

 lath house and cause considerable trouble if left unmolested. They can 

 be kept from the seedlings by painting the edges of the boxes with 

 corrosive sublimate, which the ants will not cross. An established colony 

 can be killed by pouring carbon bisulphid into the passage holes, which 

 should then be plugged with dirt to confine the gas. 



FIELD PLANTING. 



In the portions of California suitable for Eucalyptus culture the sea- 

 son is divided between periods of drought and abundant rainfall. In 

 some sections the summer drought is broken by rains in October; in 

 others it may continue till late in November or December, or even later. 

 If late in January or in February sufficient rain has fallen to moisten 

 the soil to a depth of one foot or more, planting should be begun in 

 order that the plantation may become established during the continuance 

 of the rainy season. 



No fixed rules to govern planting need be given. Every planter can 

 best decide for himself what arrangement of his men gives best results. 

 On wild, uncultivable land it has frequently been found advantageous 

 to divide the men into three squads. The first, consisting of men 

 equipped with mattocks, precedes the other and prepares holes for the 

 seedlings by removing the sod and digging up the mineral soil. The 

 2— BF 



