50 CITRUS CULTURE IN CALIFORNIA. 



THE SEED BED. 



The seed bed should be inclosed with boards eighteen or 

 twenty inches wide, set on edge about four to six feet apart. 

 The bottom should be floored, so as to prevent gophers and 

 ground moles from entering the seed bed. In no case should 

 the seed be sown in a bed in open ground, for a mole in one 

 night will destroy nearly all the plants. Laths should be nailed 

 on top, leaving a space of one half inch between them to pro- 

 tect the seed from being scratched up by birds. A covering 

 of thin muslin should be put on top of the laths to protect the 

 young plants from being scorched by the hot sun. If the 

 weather be cloudy, it is well that the covering be removed to 

 allow the bed to get warm. It is better to plant the seed 

 thickly and broadcast; as all plants are to be removed, it does 

 not matter how thick they come up. The seed should be cov- 

 ered from one to two inches. 



TIME OF PLANTING THE SEED. 



Many plant the seed in January and February. This is en- 

 tirely too early, as the seed will not germinate until spring. 

 April, and even May, are the best months, as the ground is 

 then warm and all danger of frost is over. The seed bed 

 should be kept moist, but not too wet. 



TRANSPLANTING. 



In one year the plants will be large enough to be trans- 

 planted in nursery form. A section of the bed should only 

 be dug up at a time; the plants should be assorted; the very 

 small and delicate ones should be planted in shallow boxes by 

 themselves and kept another year; they being so small and 

 delicate are generally scorched by the sun when planted in the 

 open ground, and those that do not generally remain small in 

 the nursery. 



