﻿194 
  History 
  of 
  Durham. 
  

  

  a 
  plant-bed 
  so 
  much 
  as 
  compacting 
  it 
  when 
  wet, 
  and 
  as 
  

   plants 
  are 
  almost 
  always 
  drawn 
  when 
  the 
  soil 
  is 
  wet 
  no 
  

   pains 
  should 
  be 
  spared 
  to 
  prevent 
  treading 
  upon 
  or 
  other- 
  

   wise 
  compressing 
  the 
  bed. 
  If 
  from 
  any 
  cause 
  the 
  plants 
  

   begin 
  to 
  turn 
  yellow 
  and 
  wither 
  away 
  shade 
  must 
  be 
  {)ro- 
  

   vided 
  by 
  buikling 
  over 
  the 
  bed 
  a 
  low 
  arbor 
  of 
  green 
  boughs 
  

   and 
  watering 
  the 
  surface 
  copiously. 
  This 
  will 
  almost 
  al- 
  

   ways 
  give 
  new 
  vitality 
  to 
  the 
  enfeebled 
  plants. 
  

  

  A 
  practice 
  of 
  many 
  good 
  planters 
  is 
  to 
  re?ow 
  the 
  beds 
  

   with 
  about 
  half 
  the 
  quantity 
  of 
  seed 
  originally 
  used 
  as 
  

   soon 
  as 
  the 
  first 
  plants 
  appear, 
  so 
  that 
  if 
  the 
  first 
  plants 
  are 
  

   destroyed 
  in 
  any 
  manner 
  the 
  seed 
  last 
  sown 
  will 
  be 
  under- 
  

   going 
  the 
  process 
  of 
  germination 
  and 
  a 
  second 
  crop 
  of 
  

   plants 
  will 
  be 
  assured. 
  

  

  In 
  Tennessee 
  and 
  in 
  North 
  Carolina 
  plant-beds 
  may 
  be 
  

   prepared 
  and 
  sown 
  at 
  any 
  time 
  from 
  the 
  first 
  of 
  November 
  

   until 
  the 
  first 
  of 
  April. 
  Prepared 
  while 
  wet 
  or 
  frozen, 
  a 
  

   plant-bed 
  rarely 
  does 
  well. 
  Beds 
  are 
  usually 
  burned 
  in 
  

   February 
  or 
  March 
  ; 
  but 
  if 
  the 
  burning 
  is 
  done 
  in 
  the 
  fall, 
  

   when 
  the 
  soil 
  is 
  dry, 
  less 
  fuel 
  is 
  needed, 
  and 
  the 
  prepared 
  

   bed 
  may 
  be 
  left, 
  to 
  the 
  meliorating 
  influences 
  of 
  the 
  winter 
  

   freezing, 
  to 
  be 
  sown 
  in 
  the 
  early 
  spring. 
  Many 
  good 
  farm- 
  

   'ers 
  sow 
  the 
  fall 
  burned 
  beds 
  as 
  soon 
  as 
  prepared, 
  but 
  there 
  

   is 
  some 
  risk 
  in 
  so 
  doing. 
  Heavy 
  rains 
  and 
  melting 
  snows 
  

   are 
  apt 
  to 
  wash 
  or 
  drift 
  the 
  seeds, 
  and 
  so 
  disturb 
  their 
  uni- 
  

   form 
  distribution. 
  One 
  of 
  the 
  best 
  tobacco 
  growers 
  in 
  the 
  

   South 
  says 
  that 
  a 
  rod 
  of 
  land 
  well 
  burned 
  in 
  the 
  fall 
  will 
  

   furnish 
  as 
  many 
  good 
  plants 
  as 
  twice 
  the 
  area 
  burned 
  in 
  

   February 
  or 
  March. 
  

  

  In 
  some 
  parts 
  of 
  Virginia 
  and 
  Maryland, 
  and 
  in 
  districts 
  

   where 
  wood 
  and 
  brush 
  are 
  scarce, 
  farmers 
  have 
  succeeded 
  

   in 
  growing 
  good 
  plants 
  upon 
  plats 
  of 
  clean 
  soil 
  without 
  

   burning 
  by 
  the 
  use 
  of 
  guano, 
  raked 
  into 
  the 
  surface, 
  or 
  as 
  

   a 
  top 
  dressing, 
  applied 
  at 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  sowing 
  the 
  seed, 
  about 
  

   40 
  pounds 
  per 
  hundred 
  square 
  yards. 
  Others 
  select 
  a 
  

   standing 
  bed, 
  one 
  that 
  has 
  produced 
  plants 
  well, 
  in 
  a 
  warm 
  

   location, 
  neither 
  too 
  wet 
  nor 
  too 
  dry; 
  colter 
  over 
  the 
  bed 
  

   after 
  the 
  planting 
  season 
  is 
  past 
  and 
  before 
  any 
  grass 
  or 
  

   weeds 
  have 
  gone 
  to 
  seed 
  upon 
  the 
  plat; 
  cover 
  with 
  straw, 
  

   leaves, 
  or 
  brush 
  with 
  the 
  leaves 
  on, 
  or 
  with 
  all 
  of 
  them, 
  so 
  

   thick 
  as 
  to 
  completely 
  hide 
  the 
  surface 
  and 
  prevent 
  vege- 
  

   table 
  growth. 
  A 
  bed 
  is 
  thus 
  made 
  ready 
  for 
  burning 
  at 
  

   some 
  dry 
  time 
  from 
  November 
  to 
  January, 
  or 
  later, 
  which 
  

  

  