THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY 
Well, then, let us now say the tree is placed in the 
centre of the pit, and the roots are lying on the slope, 
or the longest of them are, and the space below them 
all round, and to the centre of the ball, or where the tap 
root lies, is hollow, and the grand secret of planting 
hinges on the manner in which this hollow below the 
roots, and all the hollows among the roots, are filled up, 
and with what kind of earth. The more common way is 
to dig the bottom of the hole before the tree is put in, 
or to return some better soil into the bottom of the pit, 
which amounts to the same thing; to leave the bottom 
of the pit level, and to spread out the roots on the level, 
the effect of which is to encourage the roots to grow down¬ 
wards ; and when the roots are pressed with the soil it 
compels them to do so, and the lower they go the worse it 
is for them. The nest had move is to throw soil over the 
roots in rough, unbroken lumps and clods, making more 
hollows for the air to get at, and dry the soil and roots. 
And the third bad move is to throw in the soil among 
the roots between the tree and the spade, or the man who 
works the spade; because that way of filling is throwing 
the soil against the roots, and, of course, that must 
“ double ” the fibres back; and if they are left so, the 
practice is as bad as that of shaking the tree, which 
leaves the small roots in loops, instead of their ends 
being turned or doubled back by this throwing against 
them. And the last bad plan is to trample or stamp down 
the soil with the foot. None of these moves are now 
allowed by tbe best planters. They form their pits as 
I have just said ; break all the soil for the roots as 
smooth as possible with the back of the spade; and no 
more than three men are allowed to plant one tree—one to 
hold it firmly on the perpendicular, and two with spades; 
but as many men as you please to draw and pour in 
water, the water being, in every instance, considered 
the grand agent in the whole business. The first move, 
after the tree is in the pit, is to apply the spout or spouts 
of watering pots to the sides of the handbasin-like slope, 
not to the stem or ball, which is a contrary move. The 
slope, being of the best loose soil, is easily washed down 
all round to fill up the hollow under the roots first, and 
the hollows among the roots afterwards. If more soil is 
required the spades throw it on the slope, not among the 
roots, until the bottom hollow is quite full in a puddle, 
and the small roots are seen floating, as it were, in this 
puddle. After that—the first stage—there is no more 
watering from the sides; but now they water against the 
stem of the tree, whether there is a ball to the roots or 
not, and on no other part of the surface is a single drop 
of water allowed to fall during the process. First water 
from the sides till the roots are afloat in a puddle, and 
then water the stem to wash more and more earth down 
over this puddle, which will run out the smallest fibre, 
and bed it in a smooth, soft, alluvial deposit, as a chemist 
would say. In applying the soil to be “ washed down 
more and more,” each of the two spadesmen throws the 
soil past the stem of the tree, not each filling his own 
side of the tree or pit, but the side farthest from him ; 
then his throws help to run out the small roots from the 
ball, or from the large roots, as much as the water does. 
When all the roots are covered they change tactics 
again. They begin to form a ring of three or four inches 
or more in depth over the sides of the original pit, and 
work up to the stem, keeping the ring level by the level 
of the last watering. When a tree is thus thoroughly 
planted the last watering does not run away till it gets 
over the sides of the pit. Down it cannot go; for if it 
can there is a screw loose, and it is when it begins to 
run past the diameter of the pit that they make the ring 
of earth there to hold back the water, so as to confine 
it as long as possible over the roots, and by degrees 
they “ bank ” the water back to within nine inches of 
the stem of the tree, and they fill that space with water 
the last thing, and the space is called a cup to hold 
GENTLEMAN’S COMPANION, March 17, 1857. 409 
water. All transplanted trees have this cup, and all 
careful planters keep the cup full for some days after the 
planting, or, at least, fill it every day as long as the 
puddle seems to sink down ; but if the soil is sandy, and 
the work is carefully performed, there will be little sink¬ 
ing. Still it is a good plan to water the cup often, not 
so much for the sake of the roots at first, as to wash 
sand into every crack and crevice among the root as the 
puddle dries. 
Now, any one who wishes to learn to direct the trans¬ 
planting of large trees may write out the heads of this 
story on the back of a visiting card, and learn to repeat 
them from memory in a few minutes; but I would not 
advise much expense in amateuring on such work. I 
would recommend a competent leader; but I would let 
him understand that I knew as much about it as he did, 
and that he must be responsible for the whole thing to 
the end of the first growing season. 
There is a good deal in the “looking after” for the 
next summer which an amateur might not perceive or 
think about. They transplant as large trees in the 
Experimental Garden as can be done in any garden 
in the country without machinery. They never take 
a ball with a tree that has been prepared as here set 
forth, and if a tree must be moved that has not been 
so prepared they take a ball such as all their force can 
carry, and when that fails there is an excellent neighbour 
not far off, a celebrated maltster in Kingston, and he 
lends half a dozen “ hands,” stouter men and stronger 
than your London draymen. 
For “stakiug” large trees three ropes fastened at 
equal distances round the stem to stakes driven in the 
ground, and slanting from the tree, are much better than 
stakes which soon loosen and chafe the bark. Large 
trees are thus held firm at the Crystal Palace. Cocoa- 
nut fibre cord, such as is used for mats, makes the best 
and cheapest of such supports. It is sold by some small 
manufacturers for fourpence a pound, and the Editor 
of The Cottage Gardener could tell how many pounds 
would go to a mile length of the cord, for he used so 
much of it this season.* D. Beaton 
WINDOW GARDENING FOR SPRING. 
( Continued from page 395.) 
Supposing the spring to extend from the end of February 
to the middle of May I will now proceed to mention 
Some of the Operations necessary to Success, merely 
premising that as the objects of our care are growing 
existences, as distinguished from mere unorganised matter, 
pleasing and prosperous results will, in general, be in 
proportion to our correct thinking, intelligent reasoning, 
and unremitting attention to their varied wants. Some 
gentlemen who have of late commenced the study and the 
culture of plants have informed me that previously they 
had no idea that, from such sources, such fields of observa¬ 
tion and ranges of thought and inquiry could have been 
opened up to them. Into this tempting field, however, I 
cannot enter, but will content myself with detailing in a very 
plain way some of the simplest manual operations. Several 
of these have already been indirectly introduced; but to 
insure clearness and simplicity I will give them a prominent 
place, that they may be the less easily overlooked. 
1. Washing and Syringing. —I have already dwelt so 
much on cleanliness, because I believe it to be one of the 
principal elements of success. I have great faith in clean 
water, whether applied to the leaves of a plant or the skin 
of a man. When called into consultation by young ladies 
who were next to despairing of ever getting their plants 
* This is a figure of speech ; but we can bear testimony that cocoa- 
nut fibre rope and string are the best of all fastenings for trees and shrubs. 
We knew it in India, where it is employed under the name of Coir, It 
neither shrinks nor expands either when wetted or dried, and lasts un¬ 
rotted for many years.—E d. C. G. 
