40 



CULINARY HERBS 



have formed a ball of roots, to set them in the gar- 

 den. The next best is to grow them in seed pans 

 or flats (shallow boxes) in which they should be set 

 several inches apart as soon as large enough to 

 handle, and in which they should be allowed to 

 grow for a few weeks, to form a mass of roots. 

 When these plants are to be set in the garden they 

 should be broken apart by hand with as little loss of 

 roots as possible. 



But where neither of these plans can be practiced, 

 as in the growing of the plants in little nursery beds, 



Leading Forms of Trowels 



either in hotbeds, cold frames or in the garden bor- 

 der, the plants should be ''pricked out," that is, 

 transplanted while very small to a second nursery 

 bed, in order to make them "stocky" or sturdy and 

 better able to take care of themselves when removed 

 to final quarters. If this be done there should be no 

 need of clipping back the tops to balance an exces- 

 sive loss of roots, a necessity in case the plants are 

 not so treated, or in case they become large or lanky 

 in the second bed. 



In all cases it is best to transplant when the 



