STARTING PLANTS FROM SEEDS 25 
ance of the soil is then put in and made level, the 
seeds sown, and no further watering given, or just 
enough to moisten the surface and hold it in place, 
if dry. The same result can be obtained by filling 
and sowing the box in the usual way, and then plac- 
ing it in some place — such as the kitchen sink — in 
about an inch of water, and leaving it until mois- 
ture, not water, shows upon the surface. Either 
of these ways is much surer than the old method 
of trying to soak the soil through from the surface 
after planting, in which case it is next to impossible 
to wet the soil clear through without washing out 
some of the small seeds. 
After filling the box as directed, make the soil 
perfectly smooth and level with a small flat piece of 
board, or a brick. Do not pack it down hard,— 
just make it firm. Then mark off straight narrow 
lines, one to two inches apart, according to the size 
of the seed to be sown. 
The instructions usually given are to cover flower 
seeds to from three to five times their own depth. 
You may, if you like, take a foot-rule and try to 
measure the diameter of a begonia or mignonette 
seed; but you will probably save time by simply 
trying to cover small seeds just as lightly as pos- 
sible. I mark off my seed rows with the point of a 
lead pencil — which I have handy back of my ear 
for writing the tags — sow the seed thinly, and as 
evenly as possible by shaking it gently out of a 
