WATERING 



the sunshine is very bright is often followed by scald- 

 ing of the foliage unless the plants are well shaded. 

 Ferns, Rex begonias, Chinese primroses and richardias 

 are among plants easily injured in this way. 



Consider the temperature. The temperature at which 

 the plants are kept, the position of the heating pipes, 

 the amount of light, and the freedom of ventilation per- 

 missible, need to be kept in mind in watering plants in 

 glasshouses. It is better, as a rule, to have the water- 

 ing, 

 tic 



WATERMELON 



1967 



air in the house wher' 

 10° F. below. 



Wateriug may be indirect. Shading the glass of 

 greenhouses in summer witli some suitable material is 

 much practiced by florists for tlir puip.is.- ,.f sh.ltcrinL; 

 plants from too great inti^iisity •■{ liirlji. iui.l lur tl,.> 

 purpose of reducing evapcrjtii.ii und tr:iiiv|iii-;ii inn. 

 Certain kinds of plants, as p:ilii]s. ami s.une l<iniN ,,f 

 ferns, require this; also newly potted plants. .Syrini;- 

 ing of walks, by reducing the temperature and increas- 

 ing the humidity of the air, also tends to reduce trans- 

 piration and save watering. Watchfulness and atten- 

 tion to ventilation are necessary, however, to avoid 

 excessive humidity, which tends toward a soft watery 

 growth and extreme sensitiveness and susceptibility to 

 disease. 



Vessels to contain plants should always be provided 

 with openings at the bottom for perfect drainage. 

 This, in a measure, is a safeguard against overwater- 

 ing. Investigation has shown that a soil which is ke|it 

 continuously wet through bad drainage or otherwise is 

 rapidly impoverished through loss of nitrogen. A fer- 

 mentation is also set up in the roots, which through the 

 formation of alcohol and other products, results in their 

 destruction. 



While a constantlv wet soil is alwavs very obipc- 

 tionable, thorougbii.'-^i in \v;it.riii- ;i~^ "ft.ii ;i-< tlir 

 plants need water is i.f tin- L;i-i-;iir.it ini|M.rt:in.'.'. Wlim 

 enough water has bc.-ii sn|.|ilii-.l tln-r.-will !..■ in'.i-c or 

 less dripping from tin- ln.tt.im of tlio pot. It is a -oo.i 

 plan to leave a space of l,'5-2 in. or more at the top of 

 the pot for the reception of water. This space should 

 be so large that when filled, the supply of water in soak- 

 ing downward will penetrate to the bottom of the vessel. 



See, also, Greenhouae M(nut(jemenf, p. 696. 



2718. ■Watering-cans. 



The 

 walks 



the sides, is gen- 

 ii in greenhouse 

 iiir spout enables 

 itly tothe roots: 

 ,'ing water makes 



ments, some of the advantages of this method of apply- 

 ing water. The essential features of this .system are 

 a water-tight bench, with earthenware tile placed in 

 rows upon the bottom either crosswise or lengthwise to 

 the bed. Soil is placed about and over these. Openings 

 into the runs of tile are left at convenient points. 

 Water poured into these openings runs along the length 

 of the tile and is carried outward mihI upwiml into the 

 soil by capillarity— thus moisten iiiL^ liio .soil trom below 

 upward. In beds over 50 ft. loiii;- a f.ill ol' :' in. to every 

 50 ft. is recommended. See Figs, IIkl'-.!. Vol. 11. 



J. C. Arthur lias .xiHrinunti-il with a plan which, in 

 many r.-|irris, i^ an improv.nient upon the "tile sys- 

 tem.' II. !•■ |ioi,,ns hii.k. having the lower edges 



the buttoui ol tin- liLllili. The shattered edge of one 

 brick meets that of its neighbor. ,\ n.twork ol .-h.-mnels 

 is thus formed over the bottom ol iho I1..I, whereby 



water is distributed over the etitiic lioii ( apillarity 



carries the water upward, throni;h ili.- iav.rot liricks to 



tin- soil resting upon them. 'I'ln ,1 , . : ,aii-r ap- 



|iliod at a given time is indicate! mar the 



o'l-c of the bench. This eonsi-i , . i i.dtube, 

 jilarod at some convenient plac. . ii;i\;h- i nd in- 

 serted through and on a level with the bottoni of the 

 bench; the other rises an inch or so higher outside 

 the edge of the bed. Carnations and lettuce have given 

 excellent results grown l)y this method of subwatering. 



Subwatering in connection with flower-beds and 

 borders in the open gronn.l has also luovrd very ad- 

 vantageous. It tends to iirr\,-nt tlir I'orm.-ilion of a 

 crust on the surface of the s..il. ami ko,|.s it loose 

 and porous, carrying tlio solnMo j.lant foods upward 

 instead of downward. For further notes, consult the 

 article Irrigation. 



Watering Lawns and Flower-Beds. — In watering 

 beds in the open ground, aud lawns, the chief thing is 

 thoroughness. Superficial waterings induce the forma- 

 tion of roots near the surface. Neglect and subsequent 

 drought then prove more disastrous than ever. Tlie 

 evening is the best time for surface sprinkling. Wa- 

 tered in the heat of the day, grass and various other 

 plants are likely to have the foliage injured. Ordina- 

 rily it is better to avoid watering beds of plants in the 

 open ground if possilile or delay it until really neces- 

 sary, and then water thoroughly. Ernest Walker. 



Plunging. — Whi\e it is true that most of the water 

 given to the plant passes through the soil and escapes 

 from the hole in the bottom of the pot. yet much that 

 is left in the soil, — which is consid.rabl.- it' the soil 

 is saturated as it should bo.- is , vaporatrd from 

 the porous sides of the earihrnwarr j.ois. hi warm 

 sunny weather plants iu small pois.stan.lin;; on a bench, 

 dry out very quickly. This can be avoided by plung- 

 ing the pots in some material, as coal ashes, tan bark, 

 or, better than all, spent hops. When plunged to the 

 rims, only half of the surface watering is needed, and 

 the advantage of less watering is shown by a marked 

 improveni.Tit in tin- health and vigor of the plants. 

 Such a li.ni III i- tills plunging that plants which would 

 otherwisi iMM .1 a sliiff into a size larger pot, can be car- 

 ried along anotln-r mouth in perfect health. This ap- 

 plies more particularly to quick-growing, soft-wooded 

 plants, geraniums more especially, for these are quickly 

 exhausted by too frequent waterings. 



William Scott. 



WATEELEAF. ITii^lrophiilhini. W. Lemon. See Pas- 

 sifloni hiunl.,!,,,. ^fl. Lettuce. P,sti,i Slral'n.fes. W. 

 Lily. So.- .V//«./,7o<„. W. Milioil. M :ir,„i,],,illi,m. W. 

 Oak. (I,irrn,s ,n,,r„. ,-oiniii<.nlv known as II. at/imtici,. 

 W. Oat. Xi:,tui,i u,i„„ti,;,. W. Plantain. Alisma 

 Plniit,,,,,.. W. Plants. See .1,, ".(/ox. W. Reed. Arundo. 

 W. Pest. /■:/,.,!,„ r„„„,;,„.s,.v. W. Shield, /iraxenia 

 pelliifn. W. Soldier. si,,iii,,i,s <il.u,l,s. W. Thyme. 

 L'lodia CaiKitlciisis. W. Weed. JfJIudea Canadensis. 



Subwatering.— A method of watering known as "sub- 

 watering" has been made use of in recent years for 

 supplying moisture to plants growing in beds. W. .J. 

 Green, of the Ohio Experiment Station, was one of the 

 first in this country to point out, as the result of experi 



124 



WATERMELON. Figs. 2719-20. Plate XLIX. The 

 Watermelon {Citrulhis v%ilgari.i, which see) is a native 

 of the warmer parts of Africa. It is a tender annual. It 

 has been cultivated from ]ireliistoric times. It reaches 

 its highest development in warm ami sunny climates. 



