PLANNING FOR PLANTING 



63 



each of twenty-five kinds) will give a good working basis 

 of this material, while fifty well chosen trees will be ample 

 for the start of your nursery. In specimen evergreens 

 you should at the outset make a careful purchase of 

 good salable stock only, meanwhile buying smaller plants 

 to grow on. To meet the demand for perennials you 

 should have fifty different sorts at least, and nothing less 

 than twenty-five of any one variety. But this is only a 

 suggestion and elsewhere (Chapter XI) we have discussed 

 more fully just what to plant and how to buy. As our 

 first essential in the nursery is the soil on which to grow 

 our trees, it is important to consider this next. 



SELECTING A NURSERY SITE 



As pointed out previously, great care should be taken 

 to select proper land. The nursery plot should, as far 

 as possible, be level and naturally or artificially drained 

 to a depth of three feet. If there is such natural drainage 

 it will often follow that there is a good, deep, rich subsoil, 

 which is a most important consideration in the growing 

 of deep rooted trees and shrubs. The shallower parts of 

 the land might be used for perennials, etc. Authorities 

 differ somewhat as to the exact texture of the soil needed, 

 but all agree that in nursery soils a percentage of sand is 

 valuable for the purpose of keeping the ground loose. 

 It also prevents puddling and cracking and makes working 

 easy. 



In selecting your nursery site you will do well if you 

 can get land which has once been the bed of a stream. 

 But whatever land you purchase be sure that you know 

 just what its condition is. Some larger nurseries make a 

 practice of renting or leasing land for their purposes, 

 which Ts an idea worthy of the thought of the smaller 

 nurseryman. A twenty-year lease on land with an option 



