GENERAL EXERCISES 247 



keeping a careful record, and determine the percentage of 

 good seedlings for each kind of vegetable. 



3. Compare the percentage in the sprouting test with those 

 in the seedling test, and then determine the difference in per- 

 centage, if any, between the two. 



Chrysanthemums in Pots 



1. Soil. Mix good fresh garden soil with leaf-mold and 

 well-rotted manure, and sift. A little wood ashes, crushed 

 bones, and soot may be mingled with soil. If soil is too 

 clayey, lighten it by admixing sand. Or secure prepared 

 soil from a florist. 



2. Plant. Secure from a florist a well-rooted, vigorous 

 chrysanthemum, in a two- or three-inch pot, of some stand- 

 ard variety he can thoroughly recommend. Or secure cut- 

 tings and root them. 



3. Potting. Take a seven-inch earthen pot. Follow direc- 

 tions for filling the pot on page 245. The surface of the 

 soil should be about one and a half inches from the top of 

 the pot to allow for watering and for top-dressing later. In 

 planting, the ball of moist soil on the roots should be placed 

 within one-half inch of the surface of the soil, not at the 

 base of the pot, for there must be room for root growth. 



4. Care. Put the pot in any sheltered, sunny place on 

 the porch or in the house. Or sink it to the rim in the soil 

 of a sunny garden spot. Two bricks, with rough coal ashes 

 between, may be placed just beneath the pot to ensure 

 drainage. 



5. Watering. At first fill the pot each day or so. But test 

 the condition of the soil by looking at it and by rapping the 



