3-2 RATIONAL FRUIT CULTURE. 



the trees would not have sufficient hold of the ground, and 

 would be liable to be blown down. Of course, if a layer of 

 broken bricks or mortar is to be thrown in, allowance must 

 be made for it when digging the hole. If some garden refuse 

 is placed over the bricks, it will prevent the soil from filling 

 up the spaces between them, and, when it decays, will pro- 

 vide food. When the soil is heavy, a quantity of road-scrap- 

 ings will be useful for mixing with it, and for placing imme- 

 diately over the roots. If manure is used, it should be 

 moderate in amount, thoroughly decomposed, and not in con- 

 tact with the roots. But, unless the land is poor, it is better 

 applied as a top-dressing, so as to induce root-growth near the 

 surface. 



DAMVUED ROOTS. 



It sometimes happens that when trees arrive from the 

 nursery, some of the roots are found to be injured. During 

 the process of lifting they have been scraped, or pierced by 

 the fork, or they have been split or torn asunder, or they 

 have been bruised in transit. Before planting, all such 

 wounds should be trimmed off cleanly with a sharp knife. If 

 they are allowed to remain they are sure to give rise to suckers. 



\\U\ WOl NUS (AISK SUCKERS. 



Let us see why. When a plant is injured, sap exudes 

 at the wound, and, in dry air, forms a protective covering or 

 scab. If two wounded surfaces are brought into contact, so 

 (hat the air cannot enter, and are prevented from moving, 

 the sap forms in time a firm connection between them, as 

 in budding and grafting. If the wound is kept moist, as in 

 the case of a cutting or a layer, by surrounding it with damp 

 soil, or, as in the case dl' some hard-wooded plants which do 

 not readily decay, by placinj,' it in water, the sap does not 

 harden, as it does under the dryinj,' influiMice of the air, but 

 forms a mass of soft cells called a callus, which preSenth 



