THE NURSERY. 



63 



MANURING. 



The same reasons that forbid us to place a nur- 

 sery in a soil so barren, as mere theory would 

 teach us to be necessary for the purpose of ren- 

 dering the plants hardy, will not permit us en- 

 tirely to discard manure. Supposing the land of 

 the requisite strength at first, repeated cropping will 

 at length render it unable to bring the plants to the 

 size necessary for their standing the winter ; and the 

 application of dung is the only means we have of 

 supplying the defect. It must, however, be given 

 very sparingly, and never in greater quantity than 

 is sufficient for promoting the end in view. In ge- 

 neral, it is only ground in which we intend to raise 

 seedlings that will ever require it. When plants 

 have been removed from the seed-bed to the nur- 

 sery-line, they are no longer in danger of being 

 thrown out of the ground by frost ; and the poorer 

 the land is, the better will they be qualified for 

 their future and final destination. Great poverty 

 of soil will, indeed, make them grow more slowly 

 than they would do in stronger land, and we will, of 

 course, have longer to wait till they are of any given 

 size ; but this loss of time at the outset will be 



