60 BULLETIN 470, V. S. DEPARTMENT OF At HtIC ULTURE. 



nearly 1.9 times ami in another 1.5 times as much as where a 2-inch 

 spacing was followed. At the Wind River Nursery the crews aver- 

 aged 5,000, 3,800, and 3,300 trees per man per day when H, 2 J, and 

 3 inch spacings in the row were used respectively. 



On poorly prepared or heavy soils costs will be greater than on 

 well prepared or loose soils. Thus, at the old Garden City Nursery, 

 in a heavy soil, the crews averaged 3,000 plants per man per day, while 

 in the near-by Kansas Nursery, whose soil is a pure sand, the aver- 

 age was 4,000 per man per day. The method followed in transplant- 

 ing, whether by the dibble or by one of the various forms of trans- 

 plant boards, will influence the cost. The character of the crew 

 or crews will also be a factor. Good crews sometimes average from 

 one-fourth to one-half more plants per day than poor ones. 



CARE OF TRANSPLANTS. 



In the transplant beds the trees are given their final preparation 

 for field planting, and the care given them has much to do with 

 their success under field conditions. The root development can be 

 controlled somewhat through watering, and this is the most im- 

 portant feature of transplant growth. Shading, cultivation, weed- 

 ing, and care in winter need some attention. 



Watering. — Immediately following transplanting, and for a period 

 of 3 weeks thereafter, transplants should be watered liberally. 

 During this period the plants should become pretty well established 

 and start growth. Watering can then be decreased, but for the 

 greater part of the growing season the soil should be kept fresh 

 within a short distance of the surface. At the Monument Nursery 

 western yellow pine at first requires more water than either Engel- 

 mann spruce or Douglas fir, but later the opposite is true. Because 

 the roots are confined to a small amount of soil, potted transplants 

 must be watered more frequently than those in beds. 



It has been pretty w^ell proved that in a soil which is kept fresh 

 near the surface there will be a good lateral development of the 

 roots in this zone, and that such stock is in the majority of cases more 

 suitable for field planting than if the greatest development of the 

 root system occurs at the lower end. In digging transplants for 

 transferring to the field the lower portion of the roots is almost 

 certain to be cut or broken off. The result is that when a plant 

 whose main root development has been at the lower end is placed in 

 its new habitat, it must develop new feeders before it can fully 

 avail itself of the water and plant food available. It is desirable, 

 therefore, that the main development be kept within the first 8 to 

 10 inches of depth, and watering should be conducted with that end 

 in view. By keeping the soil of the transplant beds fresh near the 



