Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1886-01-22
MICHAUx'S THE NORTH AMERl.
CAN SYLVIA"
THE oAKs-Continued.

i'"'hl SOiis a. lOW lilhl
elevated, and climate not liable to late
spring frosts, which iniure both the bios
SONS and leaves. In elevated situations,
or i'll the extreme North, those species
which, under favorable circumstances,
form the most magnificent trees, become,
as in the case of other trees, mere shrubs.
The Oaks which flourish on the worst
soils are the low-growing kinds belong
ing to the section lex, and especially
those belonging to the group Phellos
and those which require the best soil are
the Quercus sessiflora, the Q. cerris, and
most of the sorts composing the Ameri-
can group Rubra.
Propog0tion, etc. The Oak is propagat-
ed with difficulty by every other mode
except from seed; and, generally, time
will be gained when the acorns are sown
where the plants are intended finally to
remain. 1t is only, therefore, where pc
culiar varieties are to be continued that
the process of grating is resorted to;
and the mode by approach is almost the
the only one that is certain to be attend
ed with success. The best stock for
grating on is Q. cerris, on which some
sorts may be successfully budded.
The Acorns need not be gathered from
the tree, but may be collected from the
ground Immediately after they have
dropped. and may either be sown then or
kept till the following spring. If they
are to be kept, they should be made per-
fectly dry in the sun or in an airy shed,
mixed with dry sand in the proportion
of three bushels of sand to one of acorns.
or with dry moss, and then excluded
from the air and vermin, by being put
into barrels or boxes, or laid up in a eel
lar, or buried in heaps and covered with
sufficient thickness of earth to exclude
the weather. Very few of any species
will terminate after having been kept a
year. When acorns are to be sown in
nursery, the soil ought to be thoroughly
prepared and rendered fine; and after
the earth is drawn off the beds, or the
drills opened, the acorns may either be
scattered over the beds, or along the
drills, so that the nuts may be about two
inches apart. The acorns, before cover
ing, must be patted down with the back
of a spade in the beds, and with the back
of wooden-headed rake in the drills.
The covering Of well-brQken soil, should
vary in depth according to the size of the
acorn, one and One-half inches being
enough for those of the largest size and
half an inch for those of the smallest
size. No mode of depositing acorns in
the soil can be worse than that of drop
ping them in holes made by too small a
dibble. The acorn drops into the hole,
and becomes wedged by its sides before
it gets to the bottom; and if the upper
extremity should be downward instead
of upward. it can hardly he expected to
grow. Sown late in March, the period
between the depositing the acorn and its
becoming plant is lessened and the dam
ger from destruction by vermin some
what diminished. Wheel it is necessary
to remove the plant. the tap root should
he shortened year at least in tdvance;
side pruning is soon necessary whtH the
| object is "A straight clean trunk
The American Oaks vary so exceeding
ly in their leaves at different seasons of
the year. in different stages of their
growth, and in different localities. that
some experience is necessary in deciding
on them.
Like most other trees. the Oak seldom
bears an abundant crop of fruit for two
years in succession, and it increases in
productiveness with age. All the species
push up shoots from the collar when cut
down, but only one or two species from
the root. After Oaks have stood in good
soil and suitable climate for five or six
years, they grow with rapidty till they
have attained the age of thirty or forty
years: and the life of some species is
known to extend to upward of one thou
sand years.
There are some Oaks in Britain which
are believed to have been old trees in the
time William the Conqueror; and Pliny
mentions Il Quercus lex which was AN
old tree when Rome was founded. and
which was still living in his time. The
Merton Oak measures at the surface of
the ground sixty-three feet two inches.
The Cowthorp Oak, i'm Yorkshire .meas-
ures seventy-eight feet in circumference
near the ground, and its age is estimated
as nearly coeval with the Christian era.
An Oak in Lower Charante, in France. is |
declared, on good authority, to measure
from eighty-tiye to ninety-four feet.
Particular attention should be given to
the remarks of the author on the subject |
of planting the Oak for future use. The |
General or State governments should |
never grant n charter for II railroad or |
canal, without "A clause requiring the
planting of useful trees, such as the |
White Oak, for instance, at the North. |