SOAKING SEEDS. 3 



A wet or moist surface over a dry substratum should always 

 be avoided. Error is common here. It is usually best to 

 apply water with a watering-pot, as watering with a hose is 

 apt to wash out the seeds and to pack the soil, and the 

 quantity of water is not so easily regulated. 



At first thought, it would appear that the apparently good 

 results following soaking of seeds in many cases are a contra- 

 diction of these statements that seeds may be over-watered. 

 But soaking is usually beneficial only when practiced for a 

 comparatively short time. It is not good practice to soak 

 delicate seeds before sowing, and it is of doubtful utility in 

 most other cases, unless it is necessary to soften the integu- 

 ments of hard-shelled species, as 

 discussed on page 16. The gain in 

 rapidity of germination following 

 soaked, as compared with dry seeds, 

 is often fictitious, inasmuch as germi- 

 nation actually begins in the soaked 

 seed before the dry samples are sown. 

 The soaked seeds are sown in water 

 rather than in soil, and as conditions * Seed-pot, covered with 

 are more uniform there, a gain appar- 

 ently due to soaking may result. In the case of strong seeds 

 which must be planted outdoors in cold or uncongenial soil, 

 a preliminary soaking of from 12 to 24 hours may be bene- 

 ficial, as it lessens the period which the seeds would other- 

 wise pass in untoward conditions. But soaked seeds, unless 

 of very hardy species, should never be sown outdoors until 

 the soil has become rather dry and warm. 



To prevent too rapid drying out, the soil should be firmly 

 pressed about the seeds. The pot or box should be given a 

 shady place, or some covering may be applied to check 

 evaporation. A pane of glass is often placed over the pot 

 (Fig. 2) or box, being tilted a little at intervals to allow 

 of ventilation and to prevent the soil from becoming soggy 

 or "sour." A seed case, with a glass cover, as shown in 

 Fig. 3, is neat and handy in the treatment of small seeds. 



