PART I.] CULTURAL 89 



at intervals of about 6 inches, and then the little nursery 

 bed is ready for the seed. From these smooth and level drills 

 the seeds will spring up evenly and regularly. 



Before opening the seed packets, it is necessary to have 

 clearly written wooden labels at hand on which to write the 

 name of each species, so that there may be no confusion when 

 the plants come up. These labels should be about 8 or 9 

 inches long, and an inch wide, and the name should be written 

 as near the upper end as possible, so that it may not be soon 

 obliterated by contact with the moist earth. Now, this label- 

 ling process is usually done at the time of sowing the seeds, but 

 a speedier and better way is to lay out all the seeds on a table 

 some wet day, when out-of-door work cannot be done, and there 

 and then arrange them in the order of sowing. Write a label 

 for each kind, tie the packet of seeds up with a piece of bast, 

 and then, when a fine day arrives for sowing them, it can be 

 done in a very short time. In sowing, put in at the end of the 

 first little drill the label of the kind to be sown first, then sow 

 the seed, inserting the label for the following kind at the spot 

 to which the seed of the first has reached, and so on. Thus 

 there can be no doubt as to the name of a species when the 

 same plan is pursued throughout. Near at hand, during the 

 sowing, should be placed a barrow of finely-sifted earth ; with 

 this the seeds should be covered according to size, and then 

 watered from a very fine rose. Minute seed, like that of 

 Campanula, will require but a mere dust of the sifted earth to 

 cover it. 



Once sown, the rest may be left to Nature, save the keeping 

 down of weeds, the seeds of which abound in the earth in all 

 places, and will be sure to come up among the young plants. 

 But these being in drills, we can easily tell the plant from the 

 weed, and nothing is required but a persevering weeding. In 

 these little beds the finest rock plants will come up beautifully, 

 and may be left exactly where sown till the time arrives for 

 transplanting them. This is a better way than sowing in pots, 

 where they are liable to vicissitude, and from which they 

 require to be " potted off," Of course, in the case of a very 



