POT 



[ 604 



POT 



apt to puddle it; the very closeness, even 

 when the drainage is all right, prevents 

 the air from penetrating. To know the 

 proper dryness, take a handful; if by 

 tightly squeezing it just holds together 

 slightly, it will do ; if it forms a compact 

 mass, so that it might he laid on the 

 potting-board without any risk of tum- 

 bling to pieces, it is too wet. It is not 

 necessary that the whole of the material 

 should be in a uniform state of moisture ; 

 for instance, we want some rough stuff 

 to place over the drainage, that may be 

 drier. The soil is rather fine ; and to 

 improve its mechanical texture we insert 

 little nodules of fibry loam or peat, little 

 or big, in proportion to the size of the 

 pot, and the smallness and largeness of 

 the shift given. These nodules, if not 

 too numerous, may be drier. So in the 

 case of a manure, which we may wish 

 to act both as a mechanical agent, and to 

 give out its nourishment not at once, but 

 for a long period. It should be old; but 

 it should be hard and dried. When rapid 

 action from manure is required, it should 

 be finely divided, and regularly mixed 

 with the soil, or used largely as a mulch- 

 ing or top-dressing. 



The Soil should be rough and open. Ex- 

 ceptions there are, such as a covering for 

 small seeds, which must be fine ; in fact, 

 if just pressed into the appropriate soil, 

 a dusting of silver-sand scattered over, and 

 then a square of glass put over the pot, 

 it will answer better than the finest-sifted 

 soil. We would not use a sieve at all, 

 unless a very fine one to get rid of the 

 mere dusty portion ; and this should al- 

 ways be done before adding sand as a 

 lightening agent. The rule to follow, for 

 general purposes, is to use rough and 

 lumpy, fibry soil, in opposition to that 

 which is fine and sifted ; but let that 

 roughness consist in numbers of small 

 rather than a few of larger pieces, and 

 when the latter are used, let them be in 

 proportion to the size of the pot, and the 

 size of the shift given. For instance, for 

 a 4-inch pot, the largest pieces may range 

 from the size of peas to horse-beans ; for 

 an 8-inch pot, the largest pieces may be 

 like walnuts, but not many of that size ; 

 and for a 16-inch pot, a few pieces may 

 be as large as eggs, with every other size 

 downwards, and well packed with the 

 finer soil from which the mere dust has 

 been extracted. 



Securing and Preparing suitable Soil. 



Heath - soil, so necessary for hair-like 

 rooted plants, can only be procured from 

 upland commons where the heath natu- 

 rally grows. Loam of almost every quality 

 can be procured by taking the surface 

 turf from pasture and the sides of roads, 

 and building it in narrow ridges when 

 dry, and using it after being so built up 

 for six or twelve months. Failing these 

 sources, for all plants not requiring peat 

 earth, suitable soil may be obtained from 

 the sides of highways, and by skimming 

 off the flaky material from the tops of 

 ridges that have been trenched up for 

 some time in the kitchen-garden. In 

 using the latter, however, you must, in 

 general, be content with small shifts, as 

 you will not be able to get the soil rough 

 enough for large ones. The plants, not- 

 withstanding, will thrive beautifully, and 

 size for size will often yield more bloom 

 than if you had used large shifts and 

 larger pots. If the latter is your wish, 

 you may use pieces of charcoal, or, what 

 will answer extremely well, get a few 

 fibry sods taken off quite thin, dry them 

 over a furnace, or, what is better, char 

 the grassy sides by putting them on an 

 old spade or other iron, and then place 

 them over a fire ; allow the sods to be 

 exposed for a few days to sweeten ; and 

 then, if broken into small pieces, they 

 will not only be useful for placing over 

 the drainage, but also for mixing with 

 any, but chiefly fine soil to keep it open. 

 Where rough soil is wanted for large 

 shifts, it is best to pile the turf, when 

 dry, in narrow stacks, through which the 

 air may circulate, and yet the wet be ex- 

 cluded. In using such a heap, after the 

 time specified, there is little occasion to 

 turn it frequently afterwards, which would 

 be necessary in the case of other fresh 

 soil not so exposed ; for we must not 

 forget that every turning we give, while 

 it renders the soil more aerated and sweet, 

 renders it also more fine and dense, from 

 the decomposition of its fibre. Charcoal, 

 owing to its lightness, not to speak of its 

 chemical properties, is the best assistant 

 for rendering the soil porous ; and enough 

 of this may be got from every garden by 

 charring the rubbish. Failing that, how- 

 ever, broken brick, broken pots, and 

 lime-rubbish maybe used with advantage, 

 if there is nothing in the peculiar plant 

 to render one or all unsuitable. 



Draining. A plant badly drained will 

 never show fine cultivation. Where worms 



