Tomatoes. 341 



each with boiling water and leave them to drain. Sow the 

 seed in drills Jin. deep and lin. apart, dropping it in thinly; 

 then cover, and press down the top of the soil evenly. 

 Put the boxes in the frame on the hot-bed; they should be 

 within about 6in. of the glass. Cover the lights with mats; 

 these must be removed as soon as the seed begins to germinate 

 but must be replaced each night afterwards. If the seed in 

 the boxes near the outsides of the bed germinates slowly, or 

 the seedlings are slow in growth, change places with the boxes 

 near the middle of the bed so that all may come along evenly. 

 As soon as the seedlings can be handled thin out to fin. apart 

 in the rows, leaving the strongest. Give a little air on mild 

 days, but guard against cold draughts. When required, give 

 tepid water through a fine rose, but be careful in this, as on no 

 account must the soil be kept in an over-wet condition. 



- When the young plants have made two rough leaves, which 

 will be about the end of March, they must be transplanted, 2in. 

 apart, into other boxes, about 3in. deep and of any convenient 

 size. The soil now used should be composed of one-half fibrous 

 loam, one quarter sifted old hot-bed manure, and one quarter 

 sharp sand or sifted ashes, with a dash of air-slaked lime or 

 powdered limestone (calcium carbonate). In using lime care 

 must be taken that it does not retain any " quick " or caustic 

 properties, or the roots of the plants may be seriously damaged. 

 The compost should be turned two or three times to get it 

 properly mixed, chopping up the lumps with a sharp spade at 

 each turning ; it should then be passed through a screen with 

 fin. mesh. In filling the boxes, first put a layer of the largest 

 pieces of soil over the bottom to promote drainage, then fill up 

 with the finest. ; The mass of soil should be moist throughout, 

 so that no watering of the plants will be necessary until the 

 roots have begun to work. Handle the young plants tenderly, 

 inserting them in the soil almost up to the seed leaves ; make 

 them quite firm, but be careful not to bruise the stems or roots 

 by using unnecessary pressure. 



As the boxes are filled they must be placed in frames on a 

 mild hot-bed about 1ft. thick. The bed should extend 18in. 

 beyond the frames, with the manure brought to the top edge 

 of the frame-board all round the outsides of the bed: this will 



