THE AWAKENING OF THE SEED 41 



protecting the seeds from drying. A screen made of 

 lath or brush, as shown in Fig. 36, affords an excel- 

 lent means of shading a seed-bed; a screen of muslin 

 cloth is very commonly used. 



The quality of the soil should be carefully attended 

 to. It should be of such consistency that it will pack 

 firmly around the seeds but will not bake into a hard 

 crust: a mixture of sand and good garden loam in 

 equal quantities usually makes a good soil for this pur- 

 pose. In some cases moss or cocoanut fiber is used 

 instead of soil. 



Very small seeds are sown on the surface of the soil, 

 which has been sifted and then carefully smoothed. 

 They must then be protected against drying up by a 

 glass frame placed over them, or sometimes by a 

 board laid over them: after they have germinated, 



36. Screens for seed-beds; a brush screen on the left, a lath screen on the right. 



the board is replaced by a piece of glass raised an 

 inch or so above the soil. 



In some cases such seeds are covered with fine 

 moss. In sowing grass seeds for lawns, it is very 

 desirable to cover the seeds with stable manure or 

 straw. Such a covering not only keeps the seeds from 



