64 AROUND THE YEAR IN THE GARDEN 



obtained commercial horse or cattle manure may be used. 

 Remember, however, that these are dried and concentrated, 

 and do not use too much. 



For most purposes, bone flour, if no manure is available, 

 will give very satisfactory results. Peruvian guano, if the 

 genuine article can be obtained, is one of the best materials, 

 being not only rich in organic nitrogen but having also 

 generous amounts of available phosphoric acid and potash. 

 In using bone flour or dried blood or tankage it is desirable 

 to mix wood ashes with the soil. In fact wood ashes may 

 almost always be used to advantage in preparing soil for the 

 growing of plants, as the potash they contain is valuable and 

 the lime and charcoal help to keep the soil sweet. 



In addition to being well enriched, the soil should contain 

 plenty of humus and, if necessary, should have enough sand 

 added to be friable. Soil enriched as suggested will usually 

 carry the plants through until time to set them out, but if 

 at any time they seem to be holding back without apparent 

 reason a watering with liquid manure or with liquid nitrate 

 of soda, either of which can be applied with a watering can, 

 will result in a quick and marked improvement if the trouble 

 was lack of available nitrogen. 



When to Water 



WATER. Unfortunately circumstances are likely to 

 tempt the gardener to give too much water at first, and too 

 little later on when the actual needs of the plant are pre- 

 cisely the opposite. When the gardener's early spring 

 enthusiasm must be confined to the few pots and flats of 

 plants in his greenhouse or hot-bed it is a very easy matter 

 for him to be overzealous with the watering can, though 

 the plants really need little moisture; later, when rapid 

 growth, rapid evaporation and a high temperature cause 

 them to require almost as much water as they can get, the 

 gardener is busy outdoors with other things and is likely to 

 forget the regular time for watering his seedlings. The 

 result is that when he does happen to notice them they are 



