THE SOUTHE 



and separated an inch or two in the drills. My 

 experience, however, plainly tells me that they 

 should be planted in the fall, as when planted in 

 the spring- they vegetate but sparingly, and of- 

 tentimes many spring up the ensuing season, 

 from the seed which had laid in the ground a 

 year. 



" The plants may also be favorably propagated 

 from the trimmings of the roots when taken 

 from the nursery to set in the hedge. They 

 may be cut in small pieces, only two or three 

 inches long, and planted in drills with the end 

 barely covered by the soil. They will be'sure 

 to grow, unless they have been too much ex- 

 posed, and suffered to become dry, which should 

 be carefully avoided by covering with earth till 

 ready to plant. 



"At one year old, they may be_ transplanted 

 to the hedge, or at two years they are stronger 

 and better, and give more spare roots to propa- 

 gate from. I have not found the fall planting 

 to succeed well — the spring is far preferable. 



"At a year old, whether they remain in the 

 nursery or set in the hedge, they should be cut 

 off within one or two inches of the ground ; 

 the next spring six inches ; and about the first 

 of July about fifteen inches; and if not in July, 

 then the following spring, after which they will 

 require but little more than side and extreme 

 top pruning. Or the hedge may be thickened, 

 and some of the above pruning avoided, and 

 perfected sooner, and perhaps as desirably, both 

 fur utility and beauty, by careful intertwining 

 of the lower branches; the numerous thorns 

 will prevent any change of their places. 



" In making the hedge, the ground should, of 

 course, be well prepared the previous year, and 

 in the early spring well ploughed and harrowed, 

 till quite mellow. The line is then laid, and a 

 trench formed with a spade deep and wide 

 enough to admit the roots ; plant in two rows, 

 six inches apart, and twelve inches apart in each 

 row, diagonally, so that the double row makes 

 the plants equal to six inches apart in one line. 

 The distance between the plants can be well 

 preserved, by first preparing a stick cut in niches, 

 at every six inches, and laid alongside the trench, 

 which, being straight on the one side, will govern 

 one row, and the eye will direct the other with suffi- 

 cient accuracy. The plants having been taken up 

 and properly pruned of the tops and roots,are scat- 

 tered along the trench, and a man or boy, taking 

 one in each hand- puts them in their places in 

 the trench, while another stands with the shovel 

 of well pulverized earth, which he carefully 

 casts upon the roots, and thus they proceed on ; 

 afterwards fill in and press the earth to the roots 

 with the hand or foot. When all are set, by 

 means of a more elevated line, and a good eye, 

 they may be pressed to a perfect straight line. 

 Dress your ground, and all is done till the weeds 

 and grass want eradicating. It is a general 



IN PLANTER. 247 



error in rearing trees, &c, to suppose the work 

 done when planted. It is worse than labor lost, 

 unless afterwards cultivated and protected be- 

 yond the reach of the stock, grass, and weeds ; 

 nay, it is downright waste." 



For the Southern Planter. 

 SUBSOILING. 



Mr. Edito?* } — Although I have frequently 

 burdened the pages of the Planter with commu- 

 nications, yet I cannot cease before giving you 

 the result of an experiment in subsoiling. 



I find by reference to my day-book (for I keep 

 a strict account of every transaction) that on 

 the 11th of March, I commenced hauling my 

 manure from the stable and hog pen (no farm pen 

 manure touched, although a plenty of it,) to a 

 twelve acre lot, that I intended for corn, putting 

 seventy-seven heaps of the usual size per acre* 



Thursday, 12th, laid off two acres to be sub- 

 soiled. The hands scattered the manure regu- 

 larly before the plough, the furrow plough run- 

 ning eight inches deep, the subsoil plough fol- 

 lowing running ten inches deep; consequently, 

 the land was broke up eighteen inches deep — 

 the manure was covered eight inches. The re- 

 maining ten acres were broken up eight inches 

 deep — the manure covered eight inches, and 

 precisely the same quantity was put to the acre. 



March 23d, commenced laying off rows five 

 feet by two. 



March 24th, commenced planting, dropping 

 six grains in the hill, and covering them with 

 the hoe three inches. 



Cultivation. 



April 20th,. run a single furrow each side as 

 close and deep as possible with the winged eoul- 

 ter, throwing the earth from the corn. Cultiva- 

 tors followed, running twice in the row. 



May 6th, ran a single furrow each side with 

 the winged coulter, throwing the earth back to 

 the corn, cultivators followed breaking up the 

 intermediate space, running very deep, and four 

 times in the row ; hoes followed the cultivators, 

 cleared out the remaining grass, and drew a 

 little earth to the corn. 



June 1st, run a single furrow in the middle of 

 every row, to plant peas in ; hoes came after the 



* We are surprised that a writer of Mr. Blunt's 

 general accuracy should use so loose an expression 

 as "heaps of the usual si~e. ,} Why not say heaps 

 containing by estimate so many bushels. We will 

 take this occasion to say that we receive no commu- 

 nications that we value more than those of Mr. 

 Blunt: they are universally read, and that is the rea- 

 son we are so anxious that he should set an example 

 of exact and particular statements. Tn this case it 

 is true the quantity of manure was unimportant, in 

 the point of view in which Mr. Blunt presents it, but 

 we desire to avoid, if possible, all loose expressions 

 in agricultural communications. 



