NURSERY- AND PLANTING. 



61 



year a very striking instance in regard to a very considerable 

 piece of ground occupied by the plant in question, when we 

 took the charge of a very extensive nursery of forest-trees, 

 where the weeds were allowed to gain such a head that the 

 scythe had to be employed to keep the coarse grasses and 

 weeds as low as the tops of the trees ; the consequence of 

 which was, that out of fifty or sixty thousand alders that had 

 been planted, not more than as many hundreds could be 

 gathered out of the whole, and, independently of the loss of 

 the trees, the ground had to be trenched and otherwise ma- 

 naged, as if it had never been in a state of cultivation. Hoeing, 

 if taken in time, is a very simple process in horticulture, and if 

 soon done, and well done, is easily done ; but, notwithstanding 

 this is acknowledged by every cultivator, it is strange to see 

 how little it appears to be practised. 



Alders, after standing from two to three years in nursery- 

 lines, are very fit for final transplanting ; but, if left longer 

 than three years, they should be taken up and replanted in lines, 

 at double the distance. This tree, like many others, will suc- 

 ceed well if planted young ; and, in such cases, will make good 

 progress if kept clear of wet ds. But it possesses this advan- 

 tage over many others, that it will transplant with safety when 

 of a large size. The banks of rivers, and low swampy soils, 

 where only it should be planted, are very liable to be covered 

 with luxuriant vegetation ; therefore, before planting young- 

 trees of this sort, the ground should be properly cleared and 

 kept so till the trees become established, and above the reach 

 of danger. Where this is not convenient, and we know there 

 are many instances of that kind, larger trees should be used ; 

 and if carefully planted, will succeed as well as those planted 

 younger, and where much expense has been incurred in trench- 

 ing and manuring the soil. 



This tree, under the most favorable circumstances, attains 

 only a middle size ; it is deciduous, and sometimes assumes 

 rather a picturesque outline ; is of rapid growth, when pro- 

 perly situated, and affording a considerable bulk of fuel, if 

 managed in the copse manner, that is, cut over at stated pe- 

 riods. The timber is not reckoned valuable, but is used by 

 turners, &c., and by carpenters, for roofing and flooring teni- 



