136 AMERICAN POMOLOGY. 



scarcely have attained sufficient size to risk in the orchard. 

 The nurseryman should beware of keeping his trees too 

 long on his hands ; they may become unprofitable stock, 

 and are snre to require much more labor in the digging 

 and handling. The purchaser is his own master, and his 

 tastes and wishes must be consulted ; if he wants large 

 trees, by all means, let him be indulged ; he will have to 

 pay in proportion, he will have more wood for his money, 

 more weight to carry, or more transportation to pay for, 

 more labor in planting, and vastly increased risk of the 

 life of his trees ; but, let him be indulged with his five 

 year old trees, while his neighbor, for a smaller sum in- 

 vested, with less freight, less wood, less labor, and infi- 

 nitely less risk, will plant his maiden trees, and five years 

 hence will market more fruit. 



The risk of transplanting large or old trees from the 

 nursery, may be greatly diminished, and their value will 

 be vastly enhanced, by judicious root pruning in the nur- 

 sery-row. This may be done by digging, on either side, 

 on alternate years, and cutting off the straggling roots, 

 and particularly those that run deeply ; this will be fol- 

 lowed by the production of a multitude of fibrous roots 

 that put the tree into a good condition for transplanting. 

 In the great nurseries of the West, there is a peculiar 

 plow, which is used for root pruning the nursery rows. 



The Home Nueseey has been recommended by Mr. 

 Field in his Pear Culture, as a means of enabling the 

 orchardist to amuse himself, and to grow his trees in such 

 style as he may prefer. He advises to select trees " of 

 two or three years' growth, and prepare a piece of ground 

 for the home nursery. For this a rich, deep, dry soil 



