144 MANUAL OF GARDENING 
guard is one of the best. 
There are good forms of 
tree guards on the market. 
Of course hitching-posts 
should be provided, wher- 
ever horses are to stand, to 
remove the temptation of 
hitching to trees. Figure 
158, however, shows a very 
good device when a hitching 
post is not wanted. A 
strong stick, four or five 
feet long, is secured to the 
158. How ahorse may be hitched toa _— tree by a staple and at the 
tree. ° . 
lower end of the stick is a 
short chain with a snap in the end. The snap is secured to 
the bridle, and the horse is not able to reach the tree. 
Mice and rabbits. 
Trees and bushes are often seriously injured by the gnawing 
of mice and rabbits. The best preventive is not to have the 
vermin. If there are no places in which rabbits and mice can 
burrow and breed, there will be little difficulty. At the approach 
of winter, if mice are feared, the dry litter should be removed 
from about the trees, or it should be packed down very firm, so 
that the mice cannot nest init. If the rodents are very abun- 
dant, it may be advisable to wrap fine wire netting about the 
base of the tree. A boy who is fond of trapping or hunting will 
ordinarily solve the rabbit difficulty. Rags tied on sticks 
which are placed at intervals about the plantation will often 
frighten rabbits away. 
Girdled trees. 
Trees that are girdled by mice should be wrapped up as soon 
as discovered, so that the wood shall not become too dry. When 
