Seed-beds 163 



seeds have begun to break the ground, but thereafter 

 this covering should be removed, else the young seed- 

 lings will be injured. The seedlings should always 

 be given sufficient head room and light and air to 

 enable them to develop to their normal condition. If 

 the seed-bed is kept too wet and the seedlings are 

 too soft, the dam ping-off fungi are likely to work 

 havoc. Sometimes the seed-bed is made underneath 

 a tree, but this is rarely advisable, since the earth 

 usually requires too much watering and the shade 

 may be too dense. 



If it is desired to secure a quick germination of 

 seeds in a summer seed-bed, it is well to prepare the 

 bed the fall before, or at least very early in the spring, 

 and to keep it covered with several inches or a foot of 

 well -rotted manure until needed. When the bed is 

 needed, the manure is removed ; the soil is then 

 full of moisture and the seeds germinate quickly. 

 The fertility which has leached from the manure also 

 enables the plant-lets to secure an early foothold. This 

 method is practiced in some of the market -gardening 

 centers, particularly those in which late cabbages and 

 cauliflower are grown. 



When sowing seeds in the open field, the use of a 

 seed-drill should be encouraged (see Fig. 37), not 

 only because it saves time and labor, but also because 

 it enforces good preparation of the land. A drill can- 

 not be worked in soil which is hard, dense and lumpy. 

 Seed-drills, wheel-hoes and smoothing harrows make 

 better gardeners. If a seed-drill is not used, the seed- 

 furrows for ordinary use may be made by drawing the 



