The sun., 1919-08-17
An Attractive
Est ate in his
Quaint Old Town

not become loosened and the newly
established root connections broken.
It also prevents the possibility of an
air pocket forming about the stem OF
the trees and allowing air to dry out
the roots. II we'll rotted straw. hay or
stable litter has been used, spade In
we'll around the base Of the tree in
spring. Any mulch that is of no value
as fertilizer should be removed in
early spring. as soon as frost is out OF
the ground and cultivation commenced
Don't wait for your evergreens 10
begin to show signs of suffering before
you start cultivation. Start keeping
the soil stirred up Immediately after
planting. Frequent cultivation is the
secret of moisture conservation. The
ground must be kept loose and mellow
by weekly cultivation.
The drier the season the greater
the necessity for cultivation. Some
make the mistake of mulching their
newly planted evergreens and doing
no cultivation. This substitute is bet
ter than no cultivation at all, but the
ioots Of all trees need certain
amount Of air as well as moisture and
the best mulch is the dust mulch
1.-The dust mulch is especially nee
essary with evergreens. By dust
mulch is meant a layer OF loose earth
three or four inches deep, made by
weekly stirring of the soil with hoe
or light spade all through the sum
mer months from the middle OF May
to the first of September. This pre-
vents baking and cracking OF the
| soil and the escape of moisture.
Where weekly cultivation is I'm
practicable or irconvenient, such, for
&, instance, as large evergreens planted
! on the lawn, with a wide sweep Of
! low growing branches. mulch Of old
hay. leaves. we'll rotted stable litter or
similar non-heating material must be
resorted to. l repeat that bright straw
should not be used. as it reflects the
sun. which is liable to burn the foliage.
Such a mulch must be removed at
frequent intervals and the ground
stirred thoroughly with a hoe or light
spade. Soil that is left undisturbed
all summer under a mulch will often
bake very hard. especially in a dry
season.
When dry weather comes on the
latter part of June, July, August and
early September. it will be necessary
TO water newly planted evergreens, es-
pecially for the first two or three
years after transplanting. because the
soil dries down deeper than the roots
extend.
AFTER four or five years. the roots
will extend down to permanent mos-
ture and can take better care of them
selves. II watering becomes a neces-
sity, do not water every day. Water
at intervals of once a week or ten
days. Draw away four to six inches OF
the loose top soil to form a basin pour
in bucketfull or two OF water, re-
filling in the loose dry soil after the
water has drained away. A thorough
soaking twice a week is far more
beneficial than a daily sprlnkling OF
the top soil. A small amount OF water
applied directly on top OF the ground
Is liable to cause the roots to grow
upward to seek this moisture rather
than growing downward as they
should when thoroughly soaked
Late In the autumn. before the
ground usually freezes. soak the soil
around each evergreen thoroughly
This freezes the roots up wet and
prevents the drying out OF foliage, as
there is always some action going on
in the trees caused by winter winds
and bright sun sapping moisture from
the foliage"