The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1915-02-19


we'll rotted there is a possibility of
carrying to the holt large amount
of weed seed, which will offset the
beneficial effects of the application.
Mulches also serve to prevent
heaving of the young plants during
the first year OF two of growth
While it is often possible to push
cuttings back into the ground, they
are always slow to recover, The
Lemley and patent Lemley are
especially susceptible to this sort Of
injury.
Fertilizers
The average willow holt, situated
on bottom land, seldom needs fer
tilizers. If willows fail to produce
rods of sufficient size, it is much
more likely to be due to poor drain
age or acidity or poor physical con-
dition of the soil than to lack of
plant food. Very alkaline soils, how
ever, should be heavily MANFRED be-
fore planting. Light, sandy soils
which have been cropped for many
years respond very quickly to the APP
plication of fertilizer by increased
yields. The greater portion of such
soils in the coastal plain region of
New Jersey and Delaware needs fer
tilizing to produce basket willows in
large quantities. Well-rotted barn
yard manure is the most satisfactory
material, since besides its value as
plant food it improves the physical
condition of the land and acts as a
mulch to keep out weeds and grass.
Replanting Fail Places
Individual plants are continually
dying out in willow holt as a re-
suit of physical injuries or disease.
The percentage of loss for any one
year is so small that it is not likely
to be noticed until the accumulated
losses of several years make them
selves evident. 1t may not be until
the end of 10 or IL years, when
many hollis show a tendency to de-
cline, that the grower realizes that
his holt is poorly stocked. Replants
made at this time are slow to become.
produ tive. A cutting establishes it.
self in an old holt much more slowly
than if planted on new ground stimuli
taneously with the other cuttings.
For this reason fail places should be
planted up each year. Neither the
amount of material needed nor the
labor involved will be large. The
long two-year-old' stocks of the re-
plants at the end of the second sea-
son furnish the very best material
for cuttings. They are straight, free
from branches, and grow vigorously
when planted. J
The five-foot and seven-foot cut
tings establish themselves very sue
cessfully, but the three-foot cutting
do not do so we'll. The one-foot cut
tings fail completely. The seven
foot cuttings make a better growth
than the five-foot ones, but the diff
ference was not enough to justify
their use, except under the most un-
favorable conditions, since they are
subject to injury by wind-shaking,
especially on sandy soils. Longer
cuttings have from three to five times
as much leaf surface as one-foot cut
tings, which, with their greater
height, form their superiority.
Harvesting the Crop
The time for cutting willows will
be governed largely by the size of
the holt and the amount of labor
available. One thing to be borne in
mind, however, is that the cutting
should be FINISHED before the buds
begin to swell. Cutting late in the
spring after growth has started al
most invariably results in decreasing
the vitality of the stools and conse-
quently the size of the succeeding
crop. 1t also retards the new growth
since sprout buds do not form, as a
rule, until after the cutting is done.
Willow rods that are to be steam
peeled may be cut from the holt
as soon as the leaves fall and the
wood has matured. Rods which are
10 be sap peeled or used for cuttings
should not be cut from the holt, as a
rule, until December or January, UNI
less storage facilities are available.
Cutting shoots before they are fully
nature tends to make them soft and
brittle.
How to Gut
The best tool for cutting willows
rom the holt is the ordinary hook
Knife. This is made in many shapes
Ind sizes. The bulge at the end
If the handle is great help in keep
ng a firm grip. In cutting excep-
ionally large rods leather thong
attached to the handle and fitted over