6 Department Circular 383, U. S. Dept, of Agriculture 
are. Evidences of treatments of this kind were found by 
sy eas trees believed to be at least 300 years old. There is no 
evidence from Chinese sources as to the continuous fruitfulness of 
the trees; that is, whether they are annual bearers or bear fruits 
ly in certain years. ; } 
ere the Heuer of 1914, and at intervals since that time, exten- 
sive importations of the nuts of this tree have been made by the 
Bureau of Plant Industry, and seedlings have been grown from 
them at several of the plant-introduction gardens. In some instances 
the seeds have been stratified in the usual way in beds in the open 
ground, the nuts being allowed to freeze where practicable, and 
early in the spring they have been lifted and planted in drills or 
nursery rows. This has been the practice where the seeds were 
received fresh and were not badly infested with weevils. 
Fic. 2.—A grove of old trees of the Chinese hairy chestnut near Banton yins 
Chihli Province, China. Note how the trunks and limbs have had the bar! 
pee ieE gy This is partly to protect the trees against insects and diseases, 
( 
Another method, and one which is more dependable, consists in 
sowing the seeds as soon as practicable after being taken from the 
tree, using flats or a bench in a greenhouse where a little bottom 
heat can be given. The temperature of the house is kept low; in 
fact, it is best that night temperatures do not exceed 40° F. As 
rapidly as the seedlings germinate and make a few leaves, five or six 
are planted in a 6-inch pot, setting them around the rim. The seed- 
lings are carried through the winter in this fashion, and as soon as 
the weather is suitable in spring, usually about May 10 to 15, the 
balls of soil containing the little trees are lined out in a nursery. 
The seedlings are not Tnvolee apart in this operation, and the balls 
are set as close as they will stand. The following fall the seedlings 
may be lifted, separated, stored, and the next spring lined out in 
nursery rows for the second year’s growth. Usually seedlings grown 
