ed into a mixture of clay and water made to the consistency of thick
paint. With a heavy coating of wet clay around them, the roots may then
be wrapped in wet burlap sacks. They are now ready to be transported to
their planting site.

Selecting a favorable location for nut trees is very important. They
should never be planted at the bottom of a gulch or valley because, in
such places, frost pockets may occur which will interfere with both
blossoming in the spring and ripening of nuts in the fall. Nut trees
grow best near the summit of a hill. Although such soils are difficult
to plant in, stony soil or soil overlaid with limestone results in good
growth. Shallow surface soil, underlaid with heavy clay, will usually
slow down the growth of a young tree so that it remains dwarfed for many
years. It is more satisfactory to have at least three feet of soil
before clay is reached. If the soil is light and sandy, it will be
improved by adding black dirt immediately around the roots of each tree.

As most nut trees ultimately grow to be very large, they should be
planted at least forty feet apart. The hole dug to receive each tree
should be wide and deep enough to accommodate the roots without bending
or twisting them. If the excavated soil is of poor quality, it should be
discarded, and good, rich soil brought in for setting the tree. Trees
should not be planted too deeply. The collar of a tree, which is a
discoloration of its trunk resulting from contact with the ground,
indicates how much of the tree was previously underground. Although it
is a good idea to plant so that this collar is a little lower than the
surface to allow access to extra moisture, the actual planting depth
should be about as it was previously in the nursery. All broken or
damaged parts on the roots should be trimmed smoothly with pruning
shears. Such clean cuts will send out new rootlets to replace the lost
ones. After a tree has been set into the hole made for it, the soil,
which should be thoroughly mixed with a quart of bone meal to increase
its fertility, is replaced a little at a time. It must be packed very
solidly about the roots with a rounded tamping stick to avoid leaving
air pockets. I find it advisable to retamp the earth about each tree two
or three times during the first year's growing season, to insure
intimate contact between soil and roots.

Planting should be delayed if the soil is very wet. Trees will stay in
good condition for seve