Transplanting of large Trees. 



103 





Diameter of 



the Balls 



left. 



Extreme 

 Height 

 of the 

 Tree. 



Girth at 



the 

 Ground. 



Girth at 5 ft. 

 from he 

 Ground. 





Ft. In. 



Ft. 



Ft. In. 



Ft. In. 



No. 1. Beech, prepared with the 

 trench covered close over 



5 1 



34J 



2 10 



1 10 



2. Oak, ditto, with trench 











left exposed 



5 3 



40 



2 8 



1 10 



3. Oak, ditto, ditto - 



5 



37 



2 6 



1 11 



4. Plane, ditto, ditto - 



4 9 



29 



2 3 



1 10 



5. Elm, Scotch, ditto, ditto - 



5 2 



36$ 



3 



1 10 



On performing ray experiment, for the first time, in 1 824, I 

 had the trench roofed over with old rails, and any other flat pieces 

 of wood that I could get, and I then covered the whole with thick 

 turf. In this state the tree stood for one year, and was then 

 planted out. Subsequent consideration, however, convinced me 

 that trees left with balls of the size mentioned in the above table, 

 could not require the trench to be covered over in the manner 

 described. Upon this conviction I acted in this experiment, 

 except in the case of the beech, even although I had determined 

 that the subjects of this novel essay should remain under the 

 preparing process during the summers of 1833 and 1834. I 

 made frequent visits to the scene of my operations, for the pur- 

 pose of marking minutely every circumstance connected with 

 this experiment. 



The result of my observations was as follows : — In the spring 

 of both seasons the foliage upon these trees was expanded as 

 early as that of the other trees of the same kinds in the planta- 

 tion. The leaves upon the beech, the sycamore, and the elm, 

 were certainly much smaller than the leaves upon the same sorts 

 around them were : upon the two oaks the preparing seemed to 

 take very little effect, they made more young spray in both the 

 seasons than any of the other three did. But the most defective 

 of all, in appearance, was the beech. Whether I had encroached 

 too far upon the roots of this tree when forming the ball, or 

 whether the accumulation of stagnant air within the trench in 

 consequence of its being closely covered up had produced any 

 bad effects, I cannot at present decide; still, I am strongly of 

 opinion that the latter was the case. Whatever was the cause, 

 the tree looked the most unhealthy and stunted during the whole 

 period of preparation. 



On the 3rd of April, 1835, I had pits opened at the distance 

 of 530 yards * from where the trees grew, and, as each was 



* Sir Henry Steuart allows half a mile as the medium distance to which 

 large trees are likely to be moved. 



h 4 



