304 



CALENDAR OF OPERATIONS FOR MARCH. 



litter, to prevent the frost pene- 

 trating? the ground to tlie tnhers ; 

 and if an}' of them are not yet 

 planted they should be got in 

 without a moment's delay, as di- 

 rected last month. In verv- mild 

 weather they will frequently be 

 above ground before the end of 

 March, and there is additional j 

 reason then for covering ; but in 

 all cases the litter should be re- 

 moved in warm genial weather, 

 to let the beds have all the ad- 

 vantage of sunshine : it will be 

 unsafe, however, to leave tht^m 

 iincovi^red at night, after they are 

 once in the ground, until the 

 mid.lle of May. 



Seed -pans covered over with 

 damp moss at the time of sowing 

 should have the moss removed" as 

 the seeds germinate, to expose 

 them gradually to the light. 



S/orks. — Pot and prick out the 

 early sowings ; remove them to a 

 cold frame when they are become 

 established, and harden them off 

 by airing freely. Plant out those ! 

 kept in pots during winter, say at 

 eighteen inches apart ; and the 

 riclier the soil the better. 



S/ceet Pens. — Harden off those 

 sown last month, and sow now in 

 the open ground, both in patches 

 and single rows. 



SiceetwiUiams. — Plant out the j 

 last year's seedlings : let them be 

 put in masses. Sow a little seed 

 at the end of the month. 



Thrift edgings may be taken up 

 and replanted : unless this is done 

 every two years they are apt to 

 get wide and unsightly. 



Tif/rtdias. — Bulbs may he plant- 

 ed in beds, in warm sheltered situ- 

 ations. Seeds may also be sown. 



TiiUps. — These, on coming 

 through the ground, generally 

 crack the surface all over the bed, 

 for the rains will have closed the 



compost at the top until the spikes 

 break it. The whole of the sur- 

 face should be stirred, and any 

 lumps bruised, so that it may be 

 laid even : it is of the greatest 

 benefit to the bulbs to give them 

 air, and of infinite service to the 

 stems to lay the soil pretty close 

 to tliem. If any vacancies occur — 

 where the plant has not come up, 

 while the main quantity has — it 

 will be necessarv to search care- 

 fully for the cause. Sometimes a 

 stone or a hard lump of dirt will 

 have turned the spike downwards 

 or sideways for a considerflble dis- 

 tance, and thus thrown it behind. 

 The removal in time will relieve 

 it, so as to make the delay of small 

 consequence. It may be, however, 

 that the plant is affected; the 

 outer leaf may have begun to rot, 

 or, as is sometimes the case, may 

 iiave so completely closed over the 

 other as to prevent its growth, 

 and even cause it, if neglected, to 

 decay instead of grow. The de- 

 cayed part must, in such cases, be 

 entirely removed with a sharp 

 knife, and the plant be laid bare 

 down to the bulb. It should then 

 be covered a few days with a bell- 

 glass, and as it pi'Ogresses the hole 

 filled up with fresh loam (for by 

 no means ought the same to be 

 returned to the place"), and all the 

 portions of the I'otted leaf or leaves 

 should be thrown away from the 

 bed. The covering of nights, and 

 not uncovering even in the day if 

 there be frost, must be always ob- 

 served. Should the weather be 

 mild towards the end of the month, 

 and there be refreshing warm rains, 

 it will be of service to let the 

 Tulips have them ; but be doubly 

 careful that the frost does not reach 

 them afterwards. Tulips do not 

 want much wet, but the foliage ac- 

 quires strength by a warm shower. 



