HARDY FLOWERS FROM SEED 45 



loam, leaf-mould, and sand, the last two being intended to 

 enrich the soil, and render it more or less pervious to 

 moisture. Such a mixture is not always obtainable, though 

 many seedsmen now sell potting soil in sacks for every 

 purpose. Having got the soil into a proper condition of 

 dryness, the next point will be to prepare the boxes or pots 

 for 



Sowing the Seeds. Boxes of a suitable size are easily 

 obtained, those of the chocolate and sweetmeat class being 

 especially suitable. The best class of box is one five or six 

 inches deep, not more, and about eight inches or so long. 

 In the bottom make a few holes the size of a halfpenny, or 

 cut out a narrow strip at each side to allow the water to 

 escape. This done, place some rough material, such as small 

 broken coke or cinders, in the bottom to fully an inch deep, 

 and place two or three inches of soil on this. Gently press 

 it down to make it firm and quite level at the same time. 

 Scatter a little sand over the soil before setting the seeds. 

 All is quite ready for sowing the seeds, which should be 

 turned out of the packet on to a sheet of ordinary notepaper, 

 or any sheet of paper that can be folded in half. The seeds 

 run into this fold in the paper, and one may regulate the 

 sowing an important point. If sown from the seedsman's 

 packet, it is just possible that fifty seeds will drop down in 

 one place, and none in another, and the result will be a 

 fight for existence when the seedlings appear above the soil. 

 Carnation seed is large, and may even be regulated with the 

 fingers if it falls too thickly, but many other seeds cannot be 

 treated in this way. Take time and care in scattering the 

 seeds quite evenly and thinly over the surface, and finally 

 with a little fine and quite sandy soil cover them not more 

 than a quarter of an inch deep. Seeds of Polyanthus, Prim- 

 roses, and Auriculas do not want quite so much soil to cover 

 them, and a little soil dredged over them, so to speak, will 

 suffice. The covering soil should be carefully sprinkled on 

 so as not to disturb the seeds, and when all is completed will 

 be slightly lower than the top of the box. By placing a 

 sheet of glass over the box the safety of the seed is insured. 

 Give water only through a small fine rose watering-can. Almost 

 all the smaller seeds may be raised in boxes, and in a sunny 

 window where no frame is at hand, but a frame is better. One 

 gentle watering from a fine rose can will suffice for some days 

 after sowing, and if the glass sheet be covered with a piece 

 of sack or old carpet, the growths of seedlings will be 

 promoted. When the seedlings appear through the soil tilt 



