CHAPTER II, 



SEEDS AND SEEDLINGS. 



Seeds are ripened ovules, which, under the proper con- 

 ditions, develop into plants. They should be taken from 

 plants that are healthy and vigorous, and to insure ger- 

 mination require heat, air and moisture, but not light. 

 The seeds of fruit trees are usually planted in nurseries 

 for the purpose of raising stocks to be budded or grafted. 



Apple seeds are obtained by washing them from pom- 

 ace taken from cider mills. They are then mixed with 

 three or four times their bulk of sand, and kept in a cool, 

 shady place till early spring. Freezing and thawing 

 will not injure them. They are then planted in nur- 

 sery rows, three and one-half feet apart, in good soil, at 

 about the rate of one bushel per acre. For raising only 

 a small number of seedlings, well ripened apples may be 

 broken up and planted at once. Some of the seeds 

 will come up the following spring. Excellent apple 

 seeds are obtained from France and sold by dealers in a 

 dry condition. They are prepared for planting in the 

 spring by mixing them with sand and burying them in 

 a hole one or two feet deep in the open ground in a layer 

 a few inches in depth. If not received before February 

 the seeds should be soaked in water a day or two before 

 being buried. The hole is then covered securely with 

 boards, and dirt placed on them a little higher than the 

 surrounding surface. This is one of the numerous meth- 



