it is a foot high, whereas if it is sown in June or July, it will 

 often grow to six feet. 



In most catalogues, you will find lists of flowers that should be 

 grown in certain months, but it is well to remember that these 

 lists are intended for the Eastern States mostly, so that for this 

 climate you will have to advance the seasons accordingly. 



Seeds. This is the all important matter, especially in this 

 climate where seeds, if kept even a few weeks, lose all vitality. 

 Any housekeeper knows that most of the cereals used in homes 

 get weevily or musty in a very short time. I send East to one of 

 the reliable growers of seeds a list of my wants in the seed line 

 about the end of October and instruct them to forward them in 

 installments as the new seeds come into market, and are ready 

 to send out. I do not limit them in price, but ask that only the 

 best and freshest, and tested seeds he sent. There are many 

 reliable seedsmen and it is important to locate a few who can be 

 depended upon to fill orders for fresh stock only and then place 

 your order with them. If you have not had experience, incjuiry 

 of someone who has been growing flowers or of the Experiment 

 Stations or the Board of Agriculture and Forestry will result in 

 your receiving addresses of several firms, who are known to sell 

 good seeds. H. May & Co., C. J. Day & Co., and probably other 

 Honolulu dealers are willing to order seeds for you from any 

 house that you may prefer if you wish to order through a local 

 dealer. A special order usually brings far better seeds than 

 those that are placed on the general market in packets. 



It is a good plan to test seeds for yourself. Take a damp sheet 

 of blotting paper and sprinkle on it a few seeds, then put another 

 sheet of blotting paper over it, damp it also, keep it moist on a 

 plate for a few days, and if there is any vitality in the seeds they 

 will germinate between the sheets. If you count the seeds you 

 can get the percentage of germination. If the seeds do not show 

 any vitality, poor results will follow sowing. Two years ago I got 

 one ounce of Pansy seeds from Boston ; I intended to make 

 several sowings to get a rotation of flowers. The day after the 

 arrival of the seeds, I sowed one box. I estimated 90% grew. 

 Three weeks later, I sowed another box from the same package, 

 and got less than 50% plants, and two weeks later still, I sowed 

 the balance and did not get 10%. This has been my experience 

 with most seeds. To get results, get only neiv, fresh seeds, and 

 sow immediately on arrival. 



Sowing. I start most of my seeds in shallow boxes on benches 

 protected from ants. The ants dearly love such seeds as pansy 

 seeds, and if they can get at them, will dig up the last one of 

 them. You may try this by spreading a few pansy seeds on the 

 ground where ants frequent, and you will soon see them being 

 packed away for future use in their storehouse. The boxes I use 

 are about four inches deep, with small holes in the bottom for 

 drainage. ^ I fill in about three inches of finely sifted soil com- 

 posed of about one-half well w^ashed sand and one-half leaf 



