THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST. 



germinate in the next spring, but remain 

 dormant during all of the following sum- 

 mer as well as both of the winters, and 

 comeupinthe second spring. During all 

 this time they must be kept moist to en- 

 sure germination. They can be safely 

 kept over the first winter and succeeding 

 summer in a wooden box by covering 

 the bottom with an inch thickness of 

 moist leaf mould, strewing upon this a 

 thin layer of seed to be covered with 

 half an inch of leaf-mould, thus alternat- 

 ing with layers of seed and soil and 

 finishing with an inch or two of leaf- 

 mould. The box should be kept in a 

 shady place, mice and ground squirrels 

 excluded, and the soil always moist, not 

 soaking wet. 



If preferred the seeds may be sown at 

 once in 



THE SEED BED. 



It may be made under the shade of tall 

 trees where there is no under-growth, or 

 if proper shade is provided, in the open 

 garden. In either case the soil must be 

 light, loose and rich. If necessary to 

 enrich it, let it be done with well-rotted, 

 never with fresh, manure ; and that 

 thoroughly worked in so as to be evenly 

 distributed in the soil. The ground 

 should be dug a foot deep, and every- 

 thing that would interfere with the direct 

 downward growth of the young plants, 

 as sticks, stones, tree roots, etc , care- 

 fully thrown out. When the bed is 

 made in the woods, it will usually be 

 convenient to work in sufficient leaf- 

 mould to make the soil light and porous, 

 but if made in the garden it will be 

 necessary to procure a quantity and 

 work in a liberal supply. Narrow beds, 

 say three feet wide, are preferable for 

 convenience in weeding and stirring the 

 soil between the rows of plants. For 

 planting the seeds, drills are made three 

 inches apart and one inch deep, into 



which the seeds are dropped one inch 

 apart, and covered. If there is danger 

 that the soil may crack or a crust be 

 formed, the bed is covered up with some 

 leaf-mould and brush spread over the 

 surface to remain until the young plants 

 are expected to appear. Fig. 1402 is 

 is from a photograph of a seed bed in 

 the woods. After the seeds have been 



Fig. 1402. — Ginseng — Forest seed-beds with 

 100,000 seedlings. 



in the moist soil for a year and a half, 

 whether they passed the first twelve 

 months packed in a box or the entire 

 eighteen in the seed bed, the young 

 seedlings are expected to appear with 

 the advent of warm weather in the. 

 second spring. During the first sea- 

 son they attain only an inch or two 

 in height bearing three simple leaves in 

 a whorl at the top. If the soil has been 

 favorable and the plants well cared for 

 by weeding and cultivation, the seed- 

 lings will at the end of the second sea- 

 son's growth be large enough to be 

 transplanted into the 



PERMANENT BEDS. 



They are prepared much the same as 

 the seed beds, the soil thoroughly pul- 

 verized a foot deep, everything taken 

 out that would interfere with free root 

 development, yet having less of leaf- 

 mould than the seed beds, more like a 

 garden loam that is light, friable, porous 



310 



