Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1914-04-29

ouiteripe, and SOW them pulp and all as
thick as peas along towards the END OF
November. II you SOW them much
earlier. mice and squirrels will get them.
They can grow where they are sown the
first year, and be planted W here you want
to make your hedge the second year. III
these are planted thickly they will turn
any kind Of stock and make the country
side most attractive both in the spring
when in flower and in the TALL when laden
with berries, as any travelled American
will tell you. About eighteen inches is
the usual distance apart to plant these
things.
At present we are cutting down too
many trees, without any regard to the
future. Land owners should raise more
of the white pine (pinus strobus) which
are raised from seed which you will find
secreted in the cones. These open early
in September to discharge the small
winged seed, which natures in August on
the two year old cones. The seed can be
sown either in the fall or kept in fairly
moist sand in a cool place till the follow
ing spring and sown then. The little
trees can remain in the seed bed the first
year, slightly shaded, and be planted out
in their permanent quarters the following
spring. About twenty feet apart each way
is good distance to grow good lumber;
any farther than that, the growth will go
more to branches, which is not desired.
II we would only plant 100 each year,
it would not be long before this State
would be worthy of the name OF the "Pine
Tree Stste''.
Acorns are another thing we might plant
more of. These can be planted in the fall
as soon as ripe in their permanent place.
Maple seed is another we should SOW and
treat similar to the white pine. II we
would only bestow half the care on these
three things that we do on potatoes, cab
bage and corn we would be very much
surprised at the results in fiye years even.
After making our home-grounds neat
and attractive, we will be ready to take a
hand in the community. And first
would remind you that the second de-
gree admonishes us to plant vines and
flowers around our dwellings, and it seems
to me we ought to make our grange halls
more attractive on the outside. Most of
those that have seen are as bare of en-
Enlistment as an ordinary barn or COM
mon schoolhouse.
The three things we might do is to fix
up around our grange halls, churches, and
schoolhouses. / suggest these three frs
because they are Immediately connected
with our everyday life, and every live
granger is deeply interested in the affairs
of all three institutions.
l had an experience last Arbor day.
The school teacher sent to me for some
seeds to help make the school grounds
more attractive. | sent him all he needed.
day or two afterwards met him. He
was anxious to find some trees to plant
around the school grounds. Now, never
was noted for tact, so / said to him: "You
see the proper authorities and | will lend
you horse and jigger and you take some
of the larger boys and go up to Hireson's
hill. You will find there three fine shad-
bush, that have been undermined by the
road commissioner, and all that's neces-
sary is to back the gigger up to them,
slide them in, haul them down and plant
them"
They were good trees, blossom early,
and when the children are at school, and
could not have bought them for less than s.
each If had wanted them. One was fifteen
to twenty feet tall. Well, he promised to
do all this faithfully. Arbor day came and
he took wheelbarrow and some boys and
dug up four little naples about as thick
as my finger and planted those. OF course
that was all right as far as it went, but,
as told him afterwards, he had missed a
good opportunity to impress on the minds
of the scholars, the need of taking care of
the things that nature has so beautifully
blessed us with, as well as to have made
his grounds more attractive with a mini
mum of effort.
This shad bush, or wild pear, as some
call it, amelanehter canadensis, the pur-
ple-leaved one, and A ,oboualis, the silver
leayed one, are natives of this and other
New England states, the first growing on
higher land and making larger tree; the
latter grows in low, moist soil and is more
shrubby in habit. Both are beautiful
trees at any time and take the place here
OF the white thorn (cratdgus oTacantha) },
so abundant around the lakes of Killarney.
And, friends, it's worth taking care of.
| was mortified later in the season to
find that those three particular trees had
fallen into the road and had been chopped
up and burned.
"For easy things that may be got at will,
Most sorts OF men do set but little store"
The small effect OF Arbor day is most
surprising. After all these years of plant
ing, and OF song and recitation about it,
the communities have not yet risen to the
point of having well-planted school prem
Uses. The larger part of the grounds are
yet bare OF good trees. This would not be