Culture for the Average Man 



with advantage be dusted with powdered lime, 1 

 which winter rains will work into the soil. By 

 dusting I mean powdered like a slight shower of 

 snow, an effect which can .be got by two to 

 three ounces of lime to each square yard. In the 

 rough condition in which it is left after the autumn 

 digging, the ground should be left until spring, 

 and the rougher it is left over winter, the better. 

 Just before planting time, the surface should 

 be worked down level with a rake or fork. The 

 question whether to grow in clumps or lines 

 must be left for decision to the taste of the 

 individual. 



SEED SOWING. If the average man wants to 

 have a few sweet peas in bloom by the end of 

 May and during June, he must sow a few seeds in 

 autumn, but this is not recommended unless he 

 has a frame or greenhouse. The end of September 

 or early October is a good time to sow in boxes, 

 putting the seeds in rows two to three inches 

 apart, and one to one-and-a-half inches between 

 the seeds, which should be planted about three- 

 quarters of an inch deep. The plants should 

 remain in the boxes in a frame until the middle of 

 January, when they will be much benefited by 

 being transplanted into boxes of fresh soil or 



1 Freshly slaked lime. 

 19 



