Drainage. 



Five or six 24~ mc h holes should be bored in each box for 

 drainage. 



Kind of Soil to Use. 



Good light soil well mixed with a liberal allowance of sharp 

 sand and put through a fine, sieve is the best to use for seed 

 raising. Some experience however is essential to the best re- 

 sults in preparing it. It should be of such character that when 

 a damp portion is firmly compressed in the hand it will fall apart 

 when released. It should never bake. Good old garden loam 

 to which an equal quantity of sand has been added is usually 

 a good soil for propagating seed. The soil should be sifted 

 and thoroughly fined before the seeds are put into it, especially 

 when small seeds are to be sown. The sieve used should be as 

 fine as mosquito netting. 



Filling the Boxes. 



The boxes should be filled to within half an inch of the top, 

 and the soil smoothed over with a small piece of board. 



Sowing the Seed. 



The seed should be sown evenly over the surface and pressed 

 lightly with a smooth piece of wood to imbed it in the soil. 



Proper Depth for Sowing. 



The proper depth for sowing varies according to the size of 

 the seed. Seed such as the different species of Eucalyptus, 

 Casuarina, etc., should be sown upon the surface and then cover- 

 ed with a very thin layer of finely sifted soil or sand. If free 

 loam cannot be obtained use fine sand mixed with about one- 

 fourth soil. 



From one-sixteenth to one-eight of an inch of covering for 

 seed such as the ones mentioned will give the best results. A 

 very good rule to go by in regard to seed sowing is to make 

 the thickness of the covering equal as nearly as possible the 

 diameter of the seed. 



Attention to the Soil after Sowing. 



After sowing, the soil should be kept moist but not too wet. 



