38 TREATISE ON 



to be planted there, this preparation of the soil is sufficient. But if the ground is only 

 average, or by nature unsuitable for the trees that are to occupy it, must be reclaimed & 

 improved. Loose & sandy soil will break up & make more friable ground that is too 

 compact. Cow manure, or still better heavy soil if it's available, will give consistency to 

 soil that's too loose. If it's cold, compost beds, or better tree leaves, will warm it up. 

 These additives are spread uniformly over the planting bed; & while it's being dug up, 

 they're mixed in with the soil. But if the espalier previously had been occupied by trees of 

 the same kind as those to be planted, fertilizers and simple additives are not sufficient. 

 The planting bed has to be completely renewed with good, fresh soil brought in from 

 elsewhere. 



If bush-, fan-shaped, &c, trees are planted in new kitchen gardens where the soil 

 is good (as I assume it is), well dug up & prepared, the trees will succeed well there, as 

 long as their species & the quality of the soil are compatible. But if the bed of a former 

 kitchen garden has to be renewed, the same must be done as for the espaliers: change the 

 soil or change the type of tree, replacing trees that have fruit with seeds with trees that 

 have fruit with pits, or the reverse. Similarly, when a tree is planted in a place previously 

 occupied for several years by another tree of the same kind, a hole must be dug that is 

 two or three feet deep with an opening of thirty-six square feet, i.e. six by six feet. Strew 

 the soil taken from it over the nearby ground, & fill it with good fresh soil. 



I think it's superfluous to warn that if stones, gravelly or pebbly veins &c, are 

 found while digging holes, trenches, or turning up the soil, this material must be removed 

 & substituted with good soil. 



