4*1 4 Remarks on Steuart 's Planter 1 's Guide. 



ing, I shall not enlarge upon either, as every gardener knows 

 that his trees will reward him for whatever pains he may take 

 in the removing of them : but this I shall say, that I always 

 prefer fresh soil to the old that would adhere to the roots ; 

 and, notwithstanding that I never yet used a pick, I have 

 always used three-prong forks in preference to spades; and 

 when the tree is well undermined, I cause as much of the 

 earth to be picked out from between the roots as I possibly 

 can, with sharp-pointed sticks, with which, in my opinion, a 

 man is less likely to injure the roots than with a pick, as he 

 can humour his hand to the position of the roots, either on 

 this side or on that, above or below them, which he could not 

 do so nicely with a pick. In this way the trees are nearly, or 

 entirely, freed from the earth which would otherwise adhere 

 to them, the weight of which, in my opinion, only tends to 

 rack and sprain the roots. By this method I have removed 

 large trees, some roots of which I followed 1 5 ft. from the 

 stem ; but this is by no means necessary, although I have 

 planted many that required a pit 10 ft. over. A tree with such 

 roots as this I have planted in ground well prepared, the earth 

 made very fine, or some brought on purpose, carefully filled 

 in amongst the roots and fibres, and fastened with a pot or 

 two of water, which carries with it the small particles of earth 

 and sand, and by that means fills up every cavity, so that, as 

 soon as any fibre makes the least essay it catches hold, and 

 one mouth begets another, and so on, till the whole is in 

 motion. Should it be required to take any off the branches, 

 I always defer it till the following season. I have a great 

 respect for Mr. Gorrie, but I cannot agree with him in cutting 

 any branches off fresh-planted trees, or taking the leaves off 

 cuttings ; in fact, I have found cuttings, without a leaf removed, 

 strike much better than those which were stripped. The last 

 three years I have particularly remarked this in striking Eccre- 

 mocarpus scaber : those cuttings struck best that had a leaf 

 or a pair remaining at the very joint at which they were cut 

 off, and, in fact, formed plants in nearly half the time that 

 those did which had them removed. * This sketch of my 

 manner and ideas of planting, &c, I give you, and, if you think 

 proper, the world, without any thanks to Sir Henry Steuart 

 or Sir Walter Scott, whose paper things on planting I have 

 never once seen. The latter must recollect that gardeners now 

 are very different men from what they were in the days of 

 Andrew Fairservice, and that they can improve their minds 



* This is proved by every-day experience : every man must be aware 

 that roots make branches, and branches make roots, else how could a cut- 

 ting strike root, or part of a ix>ot form a plant ? 



