PLANTING THE TREES 



195 



holds moisture in reserve if dry weather follows, and it im- 

 proves tne condition of the soil if the weather is wet. It may 

 be that this will become standard planting practice, espe- 

 cially on soils low in organic matter. 



Do not put manure or commercial fertilizers in the hole. 

 Manure may cut off the roots from subsoil moisture and is 

 used to much better advantage as a mulch on the surface after 

 the tree is set. Commercial fertilizers may be used most 

 eflSciently as indicated in the chapter '^Managing Orchard 

 Soils." 



(6) Handling the Trees. Keep the roots protected from the 

 sun and wind by covering them with a wet blanket or by 

 putting the trees in a tub of water on a wagon or stoneboat. 

 If the trees are dropped much ahead of the planters, cover 

 the roots wdth a little soil to protect them until the planting 

 gang arrives. Growers who have purchased good trees are 

 often very careless in protecting the roots during the planting 

 operation. 



(c) Setting the Trees, Set the tree so that the lower 

 branches which are to be retained for the head, or the crook 

 of the central leader, are toward the prevailing wind. The 

 wind will gradually push these branches upward toward the 

 center of the tree, so that they will not bend toward the 

 ground. If planting on a slope, the lower branches to be 

 retained should be on the downward side, to give them as 

 great an elevation from the ground as possible. For one-year 

 trees which are straight whips, these directions do not hold 

 until the head is being formed. 



Sight-in the tree, and throw in two or three shovelfuls of 

 moist top soil. Lift and shake the tree gently to work the first 

 shovelfuls about the roots. Let one man hold the tree in place, 

 tramping the soil firmly about the roots as it is thrown in, not 

 by pressing it with his toe, but by treading solidly around the 

 tree with both feet in the hole. The most important single 

 factor in planting a tree is to plant it firmly. Not only is the 

 tree then well anchored from the physical standpoint but also 



