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The American Arborvitae is deservedly a favorite evergreen for 
ornamental hedges, which are designed to be confined to a limited 
space in width, or height. Its vitality is but little impared when sub- 
jected to annual, or semi-annual shearing, and may be pruned into 
any desired form. It may also be advantageously planted singly, or 
grouped with other Evergreens, and is valuable in timber plantations 
where any portion of the ground is too wet for European Larch, or 
other Evergreens. The durability of the wood for posts and stakes 
is not exceeded by any other Evergreen, except the Red Cedar. 
Handling, Planting and Care of One, Two and 
Three year old Seedlings. 
Evergreens and Larch should be unpacked as soon as received, 
and have their roots puddled in a thin mud mortar made of loam or 
other rich soil, and be placed in a cool shady situation, (roots damp, 
tops dry,) and keeping from exposure to the sun and drying winds 
before and while planting. In planting, the earth should be firmly 
packed about the roots. Seedlings less than six inches in height may 
be planted in beds four feet wide, the rows six or eight inches in 
width, and two or three inches apart in the row, and protected by a 
screen the first season. The second season the slow growing sorts 
may be exposed to the sun, provided the plants are mulched with 
straw, wild hay or saw dust. European Larch, Scotch and Austrian 
Pines at the end of one year may be transplanted into nursery rows 
or forest plantation. The climate of the U. S., and more especially 
in nearly all that section of country lying between a line running 
southeast from head of Lake Michigan and the summit of the Rocky 
Mountains, is so liable to drouth, that Nurserymen and Tree Planters 
will find it profitable to mulch all transplanted trees, or seedlings, 
the first season. The slow growing sorts of evergreens may remain 
in the beds two years before planting in nursery row. 
All nursery grown Evergreen and Larch seedlings six inches or 
more in height may be planted in nursery rows two feet in width 
and six to ten inches apart in the row. Mulch the first season and in 
autumn draw earth to the plants with the hoe, or with a small sized 
shovel plow, in order to prevent the plants being thrown out of the 
ground by alternate freezing and thawing. At the end of two years 
the plants may be thinned by taking up every alternate row, and 
every other plant in the remaining rows, and replanting into rows 
four feet wide, or into permanent plantations. Seedling Evergreens 
treated in this manner will be stocky, and well furnished with side 
branches and fibrous roots, essential requisites for trees designed for 
ornamental planting. 
All the nut bearing and other fast growing deciduous tree seedlings 
should be transplanted at one year old. 
