10 GENERAL ADVICE 



in hastening germination we lose in the more 

 rapid evaporation of moisture. The lesson is that 

 we should loosen the soil as soon as the seeds have 

 germinated, to reduce the evaporation to the mini- 

 mum. Large seeds, as beans and peas, can be 

 planted deep and have the earth firmed about 

 them, and then the rake may be applied to the 

 surface to stop the rise of moisture before it 

 reaches the air. 



The illustrations, adapted from Roberts' "Fer- 

 tility," show good and poor preparation of the 

 land. Fig. 2 is a section of land twelve inches 

 deep. The under soil has been finely broken and 

 pulverized and then compacted. It is mellow but 

 firm, and is an excellent water reservoir. Three 

 inches of the surface is a mulch of loose and dry 

 earth. Fig. 3 shows an earth -mulch, but it is too 

 shallow; and the under soil is so open and cloddy 

 that the water runs through it. 



This subject of the conservation of moisture is 

 so important that I wish to present it in various 

 ways. The following extract, although written 

 for children ("A Children's Garden"), may still 

 further explain the matter: "I wonder if you 

 have a watering-pot? If you have, put it where 

 you cannot find it, for we are going to water this 

 garden with a rake! We want you to learn, in 

 this little garden, the first great lesson in farming, 

 how to save the water in the soil. If you learn 

 that much this summer, you will know more than 



