250 ON THE CLASSIFICATION 



but it is at the expense of the contiguous soil, which is 

 rendered proportionally more compact. It is true that the 

 young vegetable, at the period of transplantation, has ac- 

 quired some vigor ; and a light soil is not so essential to 

 it as during germination. It is preferable, however, to 

 transplant in furrows, when the earth is turned up with a 

 spade or a hoe, and the roots afterwards covered by ra- 

 king the earth over them. 



But we are deviating from our subject. Now that we 

 have fairly traced the seed through the process of germi- 

 nation, we should conclude our conversation, and reserve 

 what remarks I have to make on planting to some future 

 day. 



CONVERSATION XXL 



ON THE CLASSIFICATION OF PLANTS. 



* 



Emily. You have often talked to us of plants belong- 

 ing to different families, my dear Mrs. B., but you have 

 never explained the exact meaning of the word family in 

 the vegetable kingdom ; and I wish you would also teach 

 us, how to find out, to which family a plant belongs. 



Mrs. B. Your question is much more complicated 

 than you are aware of; and I know not how to give you 

 a satisfactory answer without explaining the whole theo- 

 ry of classification, which will be long, and sometimes, 

 perhaps, you may find it tedious. 



Emily. I have no fear of undertaking it ; for I am con- 

 scious it is necessary, and that, without such information, 

 it would be difficult to remember many things that you 

 have taught us. 



Mrs. B. You are quite right : the number of natural 

 beings is so immense, that without some mode of classifi- 

 cation it would be impossible to form a correct idea of 

 them. Would you believe that there are no less than 

 sixty thousand species of plants already known, and that 

 this number is increasing every day ? 



Caroline. Oh, Mrs. B., what a host ! 



1364. What is the best mode of transplanting, and whyl 1365. 

 What does Mrs. B. say of the difficulty of dividing plants into families'? 

 1366. Why is classification necessary 1 1367. How many species of 

 plants are already known! 



