II Nov., 191 2.] 0)1 Wattles and Wattle-Bark. 691 



The same effect may be produced by soaking the seeds in concentrated 

 sulphuric acid for one to six hours until the waxy layer is eaten away, 

 ancl then washing them well with water and lime water to remove or 

 neutralize any traces of acid adhering to the skin. This method needs 

 some care in its application, since the seeds must not remain either 

 too long or too short a time in the acid, and this is best determined 

 by a previous trial of a small sample. It is in all cases, however, 

 best to test the seed by soaking in water a few of the seeds for a couple 

 of days or so. and noting how many swell and how many become hard. 

 If onl}" 10 per cent, or so of the seeds remain hard, it is not worth 

 while treating the bulk at all. but if only a minority of the seeds swell 

 after two to three days in water, then unless the hard seeds are 

 softened there will be great waste, since it is usually the hard seeds 

 which give the best percentage germination when softened. 



The simplest method of softening the seed is to droj) them into 

 water which has just boiled, and then allow them to remain in the 

 water until it is cold. Seeds treated in this way should be planted 

 at once, whereas those treated with sulphuric acid or tiled can be kept 

 dry for a considerable length of time. Filing the seeds, however, 

 is, of course, only possible where small quantities are used. 



Sowing seeds broadcast on ploughed or burnt land involves a con- 

 siderable waste of seed, and is not always satisfactory in its results. 

 Planting seedlings or individual seeds appears at first a more expensive 

 and troublesome way of establishing a plantation, but is in the long 

 run more satisfactory in its results, ancl enables the plants to be 

 spaced out the proper distance apart without an,y subsequent thinning 

 being necessary. If, however, the seedlings are grown in masses in 

 trays, they are apt to suffer when planted owing to the disturbance 

 of their roots. On the other hand, growing singly in pots in the 

 ordinary' way means considerable expense. For raising seedling trees 

 on a large scale, the Forests Department uses a very cheap, ingenious, 

 and indestructible pot. This consists of a strip of thin metal (tin, 

 zinc, or galvanized iron may be used) something like an ordinary 

 collar, but shorter ancl broader, and with the free ends bent over, one 

 inwards and one outwards, so as to form an interlocking flange. When 

 bent round and the flange interlocked, it forms a flower pot with 

 sloping sides but no bottom. As it stands on a slab no bottom is 

 necessary, and by the time the seedlings are large enough to plant 

 out the roots have bomid the soil in the pot together. When planting, 

 a little lateral pressure imlocks the flanges, the strip of metal unrolls, 

 and the roots, with the soil around them, can be planted with a 

 minimum of disturbance. Another method is to raise seedlings in 

 short lengths of bamboos filled with soil, simply splitting the bamboo 

 and planting the whole in the soil when the seedling is old enough. 

 The tubes should be 4 to 6 inches long, and hollow throughout. If 

 the tube is already soft it need not be split before planting. Where 

 preferred, however, plantations may be established by broadcasting 

 the seed. In the case of the "Golden Wattle, Acacia pycnantha, 

 ]Mr. Gill recommends ploughing to a depth of 6 inches or so, and 

 broadcasting about half a pound of seed to a quarter of a bushel of 

 sand, subsequently covering the seed to a depth of about an inch by 



