18 NATURE TEACHING 



7. Everything being completed press the 

 soil gently down with the tool. This pressing 

 down has the effect of producing a firm seed 

 bed which is necessary, in certain instances, 

 to enable the young plants to rid themselves 

 of their seed-coats. It also serves to keep the 

 top layers of soil moist, for, if left loose and 

 dusty, they would become dry and the seeds 

 would suffer from lack of moisture. 



8. After the seeds have been sown the 

 box must be watered. This requires care or 

 delicate seeds will be washed out of the 

 ground. A watering-can having a rose with 

 very fine holes should be used and the water 

 only allowed to fail very gently. 



SEED BEDS. 



1. Seeds are generally sown in garden 

 beds, or, young seedlings raised in boxes, are 

 transplanted to beds. The preparation of a 

 seed bed requires some care. Select a spot, 

 sheltered as much as possible from the sun 

 and wind, and near the water supply, remove 

 all the weeds and fork the ground to a good 

 depth. Mark out, by means of a line, the 

 paths which shall separate the beds ; these 

 paths should be about 18 inches or two feet 

 wide while the beds themselves should be 



