TRANSPLANTING 



73 



open ground is a very simple operation and any one can 

 succeed with it without much effort, but during dry weather 

 the gardener's skill is taxed to the utmost to move plants 

 successfully. One of the most important elements for 

 success in transplanting is a supply of first-class stocky 

 plants that have not been crowded in the seed bed. Such 

 plants make success reasonably certain. A most important 

 requirement in any case is that the soil be moist and not wet 

 and sticky. If it is very dry it must be watered or failure 

 will be a sure result. 



Shortening the Tops .of Plants. It is a good plan to 

 shorten the tops of cabbage, celery, cauliflower, and similar 

 plants when they are to be moved. This may be done by 

 twisting or cutting off a 

 third or even one-half of 

 the tops. If the plants 

 have excessively long 

 roots it is a good plan to 

 shorten them enough to 

 permit of their being 

 handled easily. 



The digging of plants 

 should be done carefully 

 and every precaution 

 taken to get good roots. 



The bed should be thor- Fig 25 Tomato plantg grown in a com . 



OUehlv Wet before dieting partment box to facilitate transplanting. 



& J 5 Such boxes can be bought at a very low price, 



SO that the Small rOOtS and are very convenient aids in transplant- 



ing many kinds of plants. They are espec- 



Will not be broken in SCO- ially desirable when plants are to be sold 

 *~ at retail. 



arating the plants. If 



possible, take a good ball of earth about the roots of the 

 plant. This may be pressed tightly to the roots and thus 

 facilitate handling. The best time of day for trans- 



