60 GARDENING WITH BRAINS '^ 



and caring for them? Concerning this you will 

 find hints in the chapter on poppies and on 

 other pages, but a brief summary is in place 

 here. Sweet peas, pansies, poppies, cornflowers, 

 phlox are among the hardy popular flowers 

 which may be planted in the beds outdoors as 

 soon as the soil can be made ready. Nor will 

 beets, onions, spinach, radishes, cabbage, tur- 

 nips, chard, lettuce, or carrots suffer from late 

 frosts. Wrinkled peas (the only kinds fit for 

 epicures), salsify, kohl-rabi, cauliflower, can 

 follow soon thereafter — say, when the pear and 

 peach trees bloom; but it is wise to wait for the 

 apple blossoms before putting in the ground the 

 seeds of com (see Index), cucumbers, beans, 

 okra, pumpkins, squash, melons. 



Rake the top soil till it is fine. With a stick 

 make slight depressions, sow the seeds thinly, 

 sift a little fine dirt over them, and then press 

 it down firmly with a shingle. If showers are 

 frequent, nothing more is necessary. But to 

 make sure of your seeds coming up, cover the 

 ground, after they are in, with burlap (held in 

 place by stones) and peep under it once or 

 twice a day. If the surface soil shows signs of 

 drying out, water it with a sprinkler without 

 removing the burlap. Watch carefully for the 

 seedling plants; some come up in five days; 

 others take a week, two weeks, or even a month 

 or fifty days (passion flower); but don't lose 

 patience; you will have your reward — if you 



