24 PRESENT-DAY GARDENING 



seedlings into pans or boxes, or into a bed of soil in a 

 warm frame, and then proceed to harden them off as soon 

 as they become re-established. This is a splendid method, 

 and one that will produce large plants by the end of May if 

 followed with reasonable care. 



In this connexion, however, two difficulties are likely to 

 present themselves. The first is the difticulty of regulating 

 the temperature nicely in the early stages of development: 

 Asters dislike rapid and frequent fluctuations of temperature, 

 and show that dislike by turning yellow or dying off in an 

 apparently unaccountable manner ; no greater range than 

 from 55° to 65° should be permitted while the seedlings remain 

 under glass. The other difficulty arises from the great 

 pressure of work experienced in most gardens at the end of 

 May and in early June. Where Pelargoniums and other 

 tender Summer bedding subjects are freely used they usually 

 get first consideration, and the Annuals wait on their 

 convenience, with the result that they suffer in many 

 ways. If Asters are thoroughly hardened off they might with 

 advantage be planted out in their flowering quarters before 

 the tender plants, as then they would keep growing steadily. 

 A goodly measure of leaf-mould added to the compost into 

 which Asters are first transplanted as seedlings will prove 

 beneficial, because the roots grip the particles of decaying 

 leaves, and it is then possible to remove the plants with a 

 full complement of roots and soil when the time to plant 

 out arrives. It is a good plan to sterilise the leaf soil 

 before use, as it often contains grubs or larvae injurious 

 to the roots. 



Whether planted in beds or in groups in the border 

 Asters need rich soil for their full development, but the use 

 of fresh or rank manures must be avoided. 



The " collar " of an Aster plant, ue. the junction of the 

 root and stem systems, is the weakest point, and any damage 



