HOCKINGS' GARDEN MANUAL. 



57 



of two feet or two feet six inches, and has been 

 drained at least six inches deeper than it is trenched. 

 Some soils and situations do not require draining, but 

 these are very rare — so rare, indeed, that external ap- 

 pearance cannot be depended upon, and there is only 

 one safe test. Persons are often deceived by a sloping 

 surface, thinking that, because water cannot lie on it, 

 there can be no need of drainage. If the roots of 

 the trees grew on the ground they would be right j 

 but as they are in the ground, and often at a con- 

 siderable depth, we must dig into the soil to see that 

 there is no water standing there. Many valuable trees 

 are lost in a rainy season ; the wet season is blamed, 

 but the loss arose from want of drainage. Few fruit 

 trees will live long with their roots standing in water, 

 and this is often the case without any being on the sur- 

 face of the soil. The only way to obtain a satisfactory 

 answer to the question, 



"Does my land require Draining?' 



is as follows : Immediately after a heavy and long 

 continued rain, dig several holes three feet deep in 

 the lowest parts of your trenched land. If in six hours 

 after there is no water in the holes, your land does 

 not require draining ; but it will more or less urgently 

 need it in proportion to the quantity of water found 

 there. 



TRANSPLANTING. 



All trees, whether deciduous or evergreen, are 

 more safely transplanted while in a state of rest, and 

 for this reason, partly, this operation is generally per- 

 formed in the winter, when the former class of trees 

 is denuded of its leaves. Evergreens should also be 

 transplanted during winter, on account of evaporation 

 being less rapid at that season. In all cases, calm, 



