THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE OF AMERICA 
21 
TREATMENT OF EVERGREENS 
T TNDER the term "evergreens" are included the nar- 
row-leaved, cone-bearing trees and the broad- 
leaved shrubs to which the azalea and rhododendron 
belong. Among the latter are to be found some of the 
most effective oi ornamental shrubs. In the spring when 
they are completely covered with brilliantly colored 
flowers, they present a striking appearance, while during 
the rest of the year the dark green foliage is an addition 
to any landscape. In selecting a location for broad-leaved 
evergreens shelter from the hot sun and the drying winds, 
both during the summer and winter, should be sought. 
This factor is even of greater importance than the soil, 
which should be a well-drained, peaty loam with an 
abundance of moisture and lack of limestone. During 
the summer water should be applied regularly to keep 
the roots in healthy condition. A top dressing of cow 
manure is also beneficial, but cultivation of the ground 
should not be resorted to, because the roots grow near 
the surface and injury will result. In the fall the ground 
should be covered with a mulch of leaves, hay, or other 
material which will keep the frost out. This mulch may 
be left on during the summer, especially if the plants 
are not large enough to shade the ground. After flower- 
ing the shriveled flowers should be removed to prevent 
the formation of seed, this treatment tending to force 
growth into the foliage and preparing the plants for 
extensive bloom the following spring. 
\Miatever the methods of propagation, it is necessary 
as soon as possible to plant the evergreens in the nursery 
row and to keep them cultivated for several years, at 
which time they are large enough to plant out perma- 
nently. Frequent transplanting should be practised in 
order to secure a compact, fibrous root system. This is 
best accomplished late in the spring during cloudy 
weather, in order that the roots may not become dry by 
exposure to the sun and wind. Fall planting is also 
practised with satisfactory results after the plants have 
become dormant in October or November. The trees are 
dug from the nursery row with a large ball of soil 
attached to the roots, these being less easily broken or 
made bare if wrapped in burlap until planting time. 
When planting, a hole is dug large enough to admit the 
entire ball of soil. If done in the spring "puddling" is 
resorted to by filling the hole with water several times, 
and after it settles putting the tree in place. Little benefit 
is derived from surface watering after the tree is planted, 
because the diffusion of water through the soil is very 
slow and,, irregular and it frequently never reaches the 
root system. Ordinarily, with deciduous trees, pruning 
of the tops is necessary to produce a balance with the 
roots, which may be cut and bruised in the process of 
digging. With evergreens, however, very little pruning 
is practised, but a symmetrical form is produced by short- 
ening the end branches, cutting out all but one leader, 
and removing any branches that are not needed. 
While the cone-bearing trees are becoming established 
they require an abundance of water, and if this is not 
available a mulch of some material, like straw or grass, 
will help keep the moisture at the roots. The mulch 
must not be more than 2-.3 inches deep, however, since, 
if too heavy, it will cause the roots to grow near the 
surface where they might be injured during winter or 
extremely dry weather. The treatment consists fm-ther 
of keeping up a healthy growth by judicious cultivation 
around the trees and the application of a fertilizer, either 
in the form of a mulch of manure, v^'hich is spaded in the 
spring, or a commercial fertilizer, such as bone meal, 
acid phosphate, etc. 
The treatment of coniferous evergreen, when used for 
hedges, requires special attention. A trench 2 feet deep 
and 3 feet wide should be dug the full length of the line 
where the hedge is to be, and the bottom filled with loose 
soil and puddled. The plants should be spaced 3-4 feet 
apart, and the soil made firm around the roots and over- 
laid with a mulch of sawdust or coal ashes. The trees 
or shrubs must be cut back about one-third, so as to 
make all the plants the same size and induce branching 
from the base, which is so essential in a good hedge. 
With proper pruning a compact hedge may be secured at 
the end of 4 years, and much of the subsequent success 
depends upon the shaping induced during the first few 
years. Pruning should be done once a year before the 
new growth appears. If done during the fall or winter, 
the cutting away of the growth which serves as a pro- 
tection for the buds will probably result in injury and 
killing back of branches. When trimming, the cutting 
should be close to the wood of the previous year, leav- 
ing a small portion for the production of new growth. 
This portion need not be very long, for the longer it is 
the greater will be the resulting growth and the harder 
will it be to keep the hedge within bounds. Evergreen 
hedges must not be handled roughly while frozen, since 
the branches are brittle and easily break off, leaving dead 
places in the hedge. — Missouri Botanical Garden Bulletin. 
SIMPLE FACTS ABOUT SPRAYING. 
/^ENERALLY speaking, spraying is intended to ac- 
complish only two things, the prevention of disease 
and the killing of insects. We say prevention of disease, 
for the reason that there is as yet no known spray that will 
cure a disease which has once attacked a fruit or vege- 
table. The spores, or seeds of a disease, may be killed, or 
rendered incapable of reproducing themselves, but the 
injury already done cannot be remedied. 
Broadly classified, insects are divided into two kinds, 
those which bite, and those which suck their food. Those 
which chew the foliage of trees and plants may be killed 
by poisoning. A poisonous material sprayed or dusted 
upon the surface of the fruit or leaves is eaten by them, 
but those which suck their food do not eat the outer 
surface of the leaves, and therefore cannot be destroyed 
by poisoning because the poison does not penetrate the 
substance upon which they feed. 
Sucking insects are smothered, suffocated, or their 
death caused by the irritation produced by the action of 
the spray material in contact with their bodies. Scale 
insects and the different aphids, commonly known as 
"plant lice," or "tree lice," are the most common examples 
of sucking insects. They suck their food through a bill, 
or tube, the same as a mosquito sucks blood from the 
skin. That is why poisoning the surface of their food 
does not kill them. The spray which will kill them, may, 
however, in most cases be combined with one of the poi- 
son sprays for the chewing insects, or with one of the 
sprays intended to destroy disease spores. 
Diseases of plants are caused either by bacteria or 
fungi. Both are sometimes called germs, and for this 
reason, no doubt, much confusion in terms has resulted. 
Apple scab is a common example of a disease caused by 
a fungus, while blight is an example of a bacterial dis- 
ease. Possibly these diseases might be called "external 
diseases" and "internal diseases," the blight being lo- 
cated inside the plant and the scab upon its surface. We 
make this distinction solely for the purpose of endeavor- 
ing to show more clearly the uselessness of any spray or 
other external remedy for blight. Blight is largely dis- 
tributed by insects, and the only possible way in which 
spraying can affect it is by lessening the number of in- 
sects. But as the insects which carry blight are mostly 
