﻿50 BULLETIN 13, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



of the nursery, where they should remain a year before being set out 

 in the field. Such stock is called "2-1" transplants. To plant 10 

 acres a year would call for an output of not over 15,000 of these, and 

 the total nursery area required would be about 10 or 12 square rods. 



The nursery should, if possible, be close to the planting site. A 

 good, well-drained soil is essential. This should be preferably a rich 

 sandy loam, and the seed beds, at least, should be heavily fertilized 

 with well-rotted barn manure. A northern exposure is best, since it 

 offers the least chance of damage from frost heaving and from drying 

 winds. Water should be available for the stock in hot weather, and 

 the nursery should be well fenced, preferably with woven wire. 



To accommodate 15,000 seedlings two seed beds 12 feet long and 4 

 feet wide will usually be sufficient. It is well, however, to have an 

 extra bed to provide against possible loss of seedlings from disease, 

 frost heaving, or drought. The beds should run east and west, so that 

 the shade from the lath frames over them will be well distributed 

 through the day. In constructing the beds the ground, after being 

 fertilized, should be well spaded, cleared of all debris, and the earth 

 pulverized. Beds should be raised about 4 inches above the general 

 surface of the ground, with their centers slightly higher than their 

 edges, to secure good drainage. 



As a protection against birds and small rodents the beds should be 

 inclosed hi wire netting of small mesh; one-third-inch mesh is the best. 

 The netting should be cut in 6-inch widths and nailed on frames placed 

 around the beds. The lower strip of the frame should be covered 

 with earth to prevent entrance from beneath it. A cover of the same 

 wire netting should fit snugly on the side frames. 



When the wire screen is being fitted to the beds it is well to prepare 

 lath shade frames, which will be needed as soon as the seedlings 

 appear. These consist of frames made of 2 by 2 inch pine strips with 

 4-foot crosspieces at each end, across the top of which laths are nailed 

 at intervals equal to their width. 



When the wire screen is in place the bed should be thoroughly 

 soaked with water to a depth of 6 inches and firmed and smoothed 

 with a spade, roller, or board. It is then ready for the seed, which 

 may be sown either broadcast or in drills. In many ways the former 

 method is best. If the seed is good, about 10 ounces (17,500 seeds) 

 should be sown on each bed, but if the quality is poor a correspond- 

 ingly larger amount will be needed. Seed should be pressed into 

 the soil with a clean, smooth hoe or spade. A layer of fine soil, not 

 over one-eighth inch deep, should then be spread over the beds. A 

 coal-ash sieve, or one with a mesh of about one-fourth inch, should 

 be used. Beds should be sprinkled until the seeds germinate, and 

 should be covered with both the wire and lath screens. The open 

 spaces in the latter should be filled in with loose laths, while light 



