Growing Flowers 167 



to make humus in the ground. Thus a plant will 

 live on and on, never really dying. If they have 

 insects on the leaves or stems, or any kind of 

 plant disease, they should at once be burned and 

 not allowed to come in contact with other plants. 



After applying strong fertilizers, such as ammonia, 

 magnesia, iron, nitrate of soda, etc., an application 

 of lime should be made, in the proportion of one 

 pound of lime to every ten square yards of earth. 



Manures are not only valuable as plant food but 

 they also serve to temper soil which is not suitable 

 as well as to provide warmth when used as a winter 

 covering for plants. 



When the soil is heavy and needs lightening, vegeta- 

 ble refuse, turf, and leaves will prove satisfactory 

 for working in to a depth of a foot or more. Light 

 soils may be made heavier by the use of stable 

 manure, which will give to the ground more ad- 

 hesion and body. 



Sheep manure and barnyard fertilizer contain a 

 generous supply of nitrogeneous food and are useful 

 as top dressing for plants which are already set out. 



Liquid manure is a food in such form that it can 

 easily be assimilated by growing plants. Its chief 



