24 HENRY LEUTHARDT NURSERY 

PLANTING—Plant the trees as soon as they arrive, removing 
the wrapper. If the holes are not ready when the trees arrive, 
dig one hole about the size required for a tree, fill it to about six 
inches of the top with water; then fill it with fine soil and stir 
it into a pretty puddle. Then take the trees, prune the roots and 
top as directed above and place them in the puddle so that the 
roots are well covered; let them remain until the hole is ready 
and remove one by one as they are needed. 
Use good top soil for filling in the bottom of the hole and 
around the roots, slanting it-a little to the southwest, leaving a 
little mound in the center of the hole; place the tree in position 
and arrange it to the proper depth by filling in or raking back the 
soil to or from where the tree will stand, then fill in fine, mellow 
soil between and around the roots with the hand, arranging all 
the roots in their natural position, and packing in the soil care- 
fully around them. When the roots are barely covered, sprinkle 
on not less than a half bucket of water to moisten the soil and 
settle 1t among the roots; then fill to the top and press down the 
earth around the tree with the foot; throw a bucket of water 
around each tree to settle the ground. A covering of coarse 
manure, straw, marsh or hay, during the first season, will effect- 
ually prevent injury from drought and is‘a benefit at all times. 
DEPTH TO PLANT—AII fruit trees should be planted with 
the graft one inch above the surface. The graft is the joining union 
between the trunk's base and root system. It is easily recognized 
by its onion-like shape. Some grafts are large, while others are 
hard to detect. 
MULCHING—is of vital importance and should never be 
neglected; the material used every third year should be coarse 
stable manure, for intervening years such materials as straws, 
grass, hay, or sawdust; any of above to be spread around the tree 
for a space of from four to five feet and three to six inches deep. 
Lhis mulch should be placed around the trees about December 1st 
each year and left until about May 10th when manure should be 
removed and if other materials are used it should be removed 
also, if land is to be cultivated. 
Bui, 1 the orchard cannot be cultivated, the mulch material 
named above except manure should be left around the trees all 
summer, to hold moisture and keep down grass and weeds. The 
object of mulching in early winter is to keep the ground from 
thawing around the roots until late in spring, as more trees die 
from alternate freezing and thawing of roots than from all other 
causes, and the mulch will carry the roots through in perfect con- 
dition, if enough is kept on. 
AFTER CULTURE—Cultivate well in the early part of the 
summer and in the month of October. The principal of cultiva- 
tion is that the loose and pulverized soil on the surface prevents 
the evaporation of moisture and keeps weeds in check. It is 
important to attend annually to surface drainage. 
Wood ashes may be applied if hard-pan soil is the problem, 
otherwise not necessary. 
Bone dust, and plaster are excellent manure and stimulant for 
trees when used on the surface. No manure of any kind should 
be put in the hole with the tree; it is very injurious, causing a 
rank growth, making the tree tender and consequently short lived. 
Cow manure is unquestionably the best fertilizer for all kinds 
of fruit trees, but they will be benefitted by the liberal use of 
most any well-rotted manure, and planters should bear in mind 
that it pays both in the quality and quantity of the fruit to fer- 
tilize fruit trees. 
The only safe way to apply fertilizers to the tree after planted 
is to rake them into the ground—not in actual intimate contact 
with the roots. When so applied, the moisture in the ground 
dissolves them and makes dilute solutions which feed the tree in- 
stead of damaging the roots. Fertilizing in the fall acts as a 
winter mulch and enriches the soil for the next season’s showing. 
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