SEEDLINGS 



warm and settled weather, that they will be 

 likely to fail utterly when subjected to the or- 

 deal of transplanting and the change from in- 

 doors to out. It is only by giving them the very 

 best of care that we succeed with them, and 

 this care they seldom get because it must be 

 made up of everyday attention to little things, 

 which seem so insignificant that we generally 

 fail to recognize the great importance of them, 

 and, by so doing, come short of giving our 

 plants the treatment they stand in need of at 

 a very critical period of their existence. 



Seed should be sown in shallow boxes 

 rather than in pots. These boxes may be of 

 any size most convenient for the window. 

 They should not be more than three inches in 

 depth. It is a good plan to make the bottom 

 of zinc, perforated with small holes, and to 

 put a layer of coarse, gritty sand in before 

 filling with soil. This insures better drainage 

 than is likely to result when the bottom of the 

 box is of wood, as the latter will soon become 

 so saturated with water that it will be more 

 retentive of moisture than is desirable for the 

 well-being of the delicate plants we attempt 

 to grow. Zinc will allow all surplus water to 

 pass off with great freedom. This may seem 



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