GERMINATION OF SEEDS 55 



to the mealy primrose. We figure it on Plate 

 XLI V. The silvery whiteness of the under side of 

 the leaves will at once be noted. It is not a British 

 species. The closely allied plants, the cowslip and 

 the oxlip, should find a place in our collection ; the 

 latter, perhaps, especially. 



The seedlings that spring up around us are often 

 very interesting, the first leaves being generally so 

 entirely different from those that succeed them. 

 Any one who has grown sunflowers or scarlet- 

 runners, mustard or radishes, must have observed 

 this curious feature, and in the woods the seedling 

 beeches, sycamores, and many other trees exhibit 

 the same thing. The young lime, for example, 

 has its first leaves spreading broadly like a hand 

 with extended fingers, and absolutely different 

 in character to those that succeed them. 



Seeds to germinate successfully require light and 

 air, and a certain amount of heat and moisture. If 

 sown when the ground is very wet they will prob- 

 ably decay ; if, on the contrary, sown under condi- 

 tions too dry for their well-being, germination is 

 checked, and the young plant probably perishes 

 from drought. If sown too deeply, though the seed 

 may swell and growth commence, it suffers from lack 

 of warmth and air, and the ascending shoots fail to 

 reach the surface. Nature mothers her offspring 

 with a wonderful solicitude. When the keen frosts 

 of the opening year have broken up the ground 



