248 



Principles of Plant Culture. 



soil. The soil used for petting should be of a sort that 

 does not harden, ''bake," on drying, and should gener- 

 ally be liberally supplied with plant food. Decayed 

 sods from an old pasture, leaf mold, decomposed ma- 

 nure, and sand, the whole mixed and sifted through a 

 coarse sieve, form a good potting 

 soil. The proportions of the differ- 



FIG. 143. 



Showing manner of using the dibber in planting. 



FIG. 143. Inserting roots in the hole opened by dibber. 



FIG. 144. Pressing earth about roots with the dibber. 



ent ingredients used vary with different plants. The 

 soil should be moderately moist, and should be closely 

 pressed about the roots. The details of potting are 

 shown in Figs. 145 to 148. 



Shifting is the changing of a plant from one pot to 

 another, usually a larger one. Plants in small pots are 

 generally shifted as often as their roots begin to crowd, 

 and the shifting is continued as long as further growth 

 is expected. When bloom is desired, the pots are per- 

 mitted to become filled with roots (135). 



