370 SEED SOWING AND TRANSPLANTING 



there is little difficulty in getting the rows perfectly straight 

 and a uniform distance apart. In the home garden, lines 

 should be used to secure straight rows. The seed should 

 be dropped at a uniform distance in the furrow. Seed 

 drills may be regulated to do this, but in hand seeding, it 

 will be necessary to exercise care to secure an even dis- 

 tribution. After seeding, the furrows may be closed with 

 the rake or hoe. With seeding machines, a roller at- 

 tachment is generally used to firm the soil, but in hand 

 seeding the soil can be pressed with the back of the hoe. 



Transplanting. Many of the vegetable crops are 

 started in seed boxes or beds and later transplanted to 

 their permanent quarters. In the arid regions, transplant- 

 ing is not practiced so much as in the more humid sections 

 where the weather conditions are more favorable for growth. 

 Some of the most important reasons for transplanting 

 are the following : 



1. Crops such as tomatoes, cabbage, celery, and lettuce 

 can be started very much earlier in the spring in hotbeds 

 or greenhouses and later transplanted to the field. 



2. Crops do not require as much space during the first 

 few weeks of their growth and hence larger areas may be 

 used for other crops. In this manner, two or more crops 

 may often be produced in a single season from the same 

 area. 



3. Transplanting generally produces a more fibrous root 

 system. In transplanting, the taproot and many of the 

 small, tender lateral roots are broken, causing a branching 

 of these roots. 



4. The soil for seeding may be prepared extremely fine 

 and the temperature definitely controlled. The seedlings 

 may be easily and carefully watered at the proper time. 



