1700. The perforator (fig. 317.) is tried as a substitute for the spade, in planting young tap-rooted trees in rough ground. It was invented by Mr. Munro, formerly at the Bristol Nursery, and costs in that part of the country about 8s. In using it, one man employs the instrument, while another man or boy holds a bundle of plants. The man first inserts the instrument in the soil, holding it up for the reception of the plant; round which, when introduced, he inserts the iron three times, in order to loosen the soil about the roots; then treads down the turf, and the plant becomes as firmly set in the ground as if it had been long planted. Two men will set in one day from 500 to 600 plants with this instrument, at 1s. per hundred; whereas, by digging holes, the expense would be 3s. per hundred, and the planting not done so well. (Gard. Mag., vol. iii. p. 215.)
