III.) THE AMERICAN GARDENER. 79 



ripe seed. I tried, some years ago, fifty grains of 

 wheat, gathered green, against fifty, gathered ripe. 

 Not only were the plants of the former feeble, 

 when compared with the latter; not only was the 

 produce of the former two-thirds less than that of 

 the latter ; but even the quality of the grain was not 

 half so good. Many of the ears had smut, which 

 was not the case with those that came from the 

 ripened seed, though the land and the cultivation 

 were, in both cases, the same. 

 SOWING. 



155. The first thing, relating to sowing, is, the 

 preparation of the ground. It may be more or 

 \essjlne according to the sort of seed to be sown. 

 Peas and beans do not, of course, require the earth 

 so fine as small seeds do. But, still, the finer the 

 better for every thing" ; for, it is best if the seed be 

 actually pressed by the earth in every part; and 

 many seeds, if not all, are best situated when the 

 earth is trodden down upon them. 



156. Of course the ground should be good, either 

 in itself, or made good by manure of some sort, 

 and, on the subject of manure, see Paragraphs 28 

 and 29. But, in all cases, the ground should be 

 fresh ; that is to say, it should be dug just before 

 the act of sowing, in order that the seeds may have 

 the full benefit of the fermentation, that takes place 

 upon every moving of the earth. 



157. Never sow when the ground is wet ; nor, 

 indeed, if it can be avoided, perform any other act 

 with, or on, the ground of a garden. If you dig 

 ground in wet weather, you make a sort of mortar 

 of it : it binds when then sun or wind dries it. The 

 fermentation does not take place : and it becomes 

 unfavourable to vegetation, especially if the ground 

 be, in the smaPest decree, stiff in its nature. It is 



