The Florida agriculturist. [volume] (DeLand, Fla.) 1878-1911, 1907-12-18

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bic timber trees send down long tap
root they also send out long surface
feeders, which will be broken off by
the plow, thus injuring the tree and
causing undesirable sprouts where
you do not want them. The sweet
gum makes use Of a whole lot OF
small roots, all reaching downward
and is not at all bad about sprouting
When allowed to grow undisturbed
the sweet gum will in time bear seeds
which might, like the persimmon
give troublesome sprouts in the fields
When kept we'll back there is nc
danger along this line When Out
to itself the walnut will bear early
sometimes. | saw a tree yesterday
that was bearing nuts, and it was not
three inches across the stump I'm
less these nuts are gathered the place
would soon be full of sprouts. How
ever, hogs are fond of them and
would help to overcome that trouble
if given the run Of the fields; but thai
could not always be DONE
In attaching wire fencing to trees
there is a great lack of forethought
among some farmers. Sometimes the
bark IS heWn off to make a smooth
solid place for the wire and staples
This will in time kill the most Wig
OrOus tree, or weaken it so that il
is liable to be blown over, breaking
at some point along the body where
it has been hewn
A tree, no matter Of what species
that is to be used as a fence post
should never have a scar Of any kind
upon the stem. Should one accident
ally happen, it should at the earliest
moment have coat Of paint of some
kind applied to the cash. In the alb
sence Of anything better, a coat Of
thick ,whitewash will help some.
remember reading of case where
boy, in a fit of ill-humor, hacked
a shade tree of white maple in his
fathers yard. Years after when that
boy had become man and the cares
Of life were pressing heavily upon
him, that tree met a very ordinary
storm which laid it low; and he dis
covered that that hack had weakened
it so that it could not stand the blast
and it broke at that point exposing
the old cash, way in toward the heart
Of the tree. And I have seen many
similar cases.
The only correct way to attach a
wire fence to live tree is to place
between the wires and tree a timber
Of some kind A good inch board
is good enough 1t should not be
secured with very long nails.
[ have found it best to allow the
nails to enter the tree no more than
an inch, placing the nails against each
wire and when it is in that distance
bending it over the wire for a staple
This will allow the tree to expand
as it grows, pushing the board away
and drawing the nails that much. II
posts were placed on alternate sides
OF the fence, a half-inch would be
sufficient, as the next posts would re-
I1eve any tendencies to draw the nails
do not advise making all the posts
OF living trees except, possibly, in
those regions where no timber grows
but suggest that there be one every
forty or fifty feet, or even farther
and putting other posts between. That
IS the plan we are following. There
should, however, be one at each cor
ner and terminus.
By the way, I see lots of wire fem
ces giving way at the corner posts,
especially where the turn is less than
a right angle. We have two such that
have been standing several years and
have not leaned a particle. Instead
OF a brace each way to the next post
another post was planted about thirty
inches IN leaned to the corner post