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APPENDIX. 
the whole theory of transplanting nearly full grown trees, but placing 
before its readers a report of a committee of the Highland Society of 
Edinburgh attesting the complete success of the practice, as exemplified 
in the woods, copses, and groups, which, removed by the transplanting 
machine, beautified with their verdure and luxuriance the baronet’s own 
park, the whole matter of transplanting was apparently cleared up, and 
numbers of individuals in this country, with sanguine hopes of success, 
set about the removal of large forest trees. 
Of the numerous trials made upon this method, with trees of extra size , 
we have known but a very few instances of even tolerable success. This 
is no doubt owing partly to the want of care and skill in the practical 
part of the process, — but mainly to the ungenial nature of our climate. 
The climate of Scotland during four fifths of the year, is in some re- 
spects the exact opposite of that of the United States. An atmosphere, 
which for full nine months of the twelve, is copiously charged with fogs, 
mist, and dampness, may undoubtedly be considered as the most favour- 
able in the world, for restoring the weakened or impaired vital action of 
large transplanted trees. In this country, on the contrary, the dry at- 
mosphere, and constant evaporation under the brilliant sun of our sum- 
mers, are most important obstacles with which the transplanter has to 
contend, and which render complete success so much more difficult here 
than in Scotland. And we would therefore rarely attempt in this country 
the extensive removal of trees larger than twenty feet in height. When 
of the size of fifteen feet they are sufficiently large to produce very consider- 
able immediate effect, while they are not so large as to be costly or 
very difficult to remove, or to suffer greatly by the change of position like 
older ones. 
The great want of success in transplanting trees of moderate size in this 
country arises, as we conceive, mainly from two causes ; the first, a want 
of skill in performing the operation, arising chiefly from ignorance of the 
nature of the vital action of plants, in roots, branches, etc., and the 
second, a bad or improper selection of subjects on which the operation 
is to be performed. Either of these causes would account for bad suc- 
cess in removals ; and where, as is frequently the case, both are com- 
bined, total failure can scarcely be a matter of surprise to those really 
familiar with the matter. 
An uninformed spectator, who should witness for the first time the re- 
