6 

 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 rais- 

 ing. Some experience however is essential to the best results 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 thor- 

 oughly 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, Casu- 

 arina, etc., should be sown upon the surface and then covered 

 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-eighth 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 Souring. 



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

 If too much water is used damping off is very apt to set in and 

 this fungus disease often proves very disastrous to such seedlings 

 as the different species of Eucalyptus, Casuarina, Grevillea, Aca- 

 cia, etc. A fine sprinkler should be used when watering. 



