CULTURE OF THE ASTER. 29 



the plants which are produced from late sown seed have not the vigor and 

 beauty which characterizes those sown from the 15th of March to the 1st 

 of April — a time to be especially chosen, if one wishes to obtain vigorous 

 plants and fine flowers.* 



2d. Sown in Pots or Pans. 



When I have but a few seeds of fine varieties, I use pots or pans, which 

 I fill with rich earth, and am careful to drain well. I take care, in filling 

 the pots, to level and lightly press the surfacie, so that the level of the soil 

 may be an inch below the rim of the pot ; when this is done, I sow the 

 seeds and press them lightly upon the earth. I water with care, and cover 

 the seeds very slightly with a fine, light sprinkling of soil. 



When the sowing is thus finished, I cover the pots or pans with a pane 

 of glass, which has been whitened by a little chalk mixed with water. 

 This glass serves the purpose of breaking the force of the sun, of protect- 

 ing the seed from field and house mice, and of preventing the evaporation 

 of the moisture which is necessary for the germination of the seed. I then 

 put the pots upon the greenhouse shelves, as near as possible to the glass, 

 in a house where the temperature varies from forty-five to fifty degrees; or, 

 what is preferable, I place them in a hotbed, covered with bell glasses or 

 Bashes, which in frosty nights I protect with straw mats. When the young 

 plants appear, M'hich will be in six or eight days after the sowing, I give a 

 little air, by raising the pane of glass which covers the pot, and at this 

 time I wash off" the whitewash on the glass, so that the young plants may 

 have as much light as possible ; this glass is no longer necessary when the 

 young plants have begun to grow tall. However, I always keep the pota 

 or pans under bell glasses or frames, and I take care to place under frames 

 the pots which I have started in the greenhouse, as above directed, as soon 

 as the seeds come up. I water whenever the plants need it, and give air to 

 the young plants in the same way as directed for plants sown in the open 

 ground. 



Section 2. Transplanting. 



Transplanting is done in the open ground, in the open air, or under bell 

 glasses or frames. 



1 . Transplanting in the open air. 



The plants raised from seeds sown under bell glasses or frames about the 

 15th of March or 1st of April, should be transplanted from the 20th of 

 April to the 1st of May; (in our climate about five weeks later.) This 

 transplanting should be done into a light, rich, and mellow soil, and the 

 roots covered slightly with fine earth. If this mellow, light soil is not at 

 hand, and the ground is too heavy, cold, and compact by nature, it is best 

 to transplant as directed in the second section of this paragraph. 



When the plants are still small, I transplant, one by one, at a distance 

 of seven inches at the most. 



It is extremely important to transplant at the time above indicated — that 



