X INTRODUCTION. 



SEED BEDS. 



Too much pains cannot be taken with the seed 

 bed, although many crops are injured, sometimes 

 ruined, by taking too much pains. The mistake 

 comes from having the soil of the bed too rich, which 

 has the effect of making the plants too succulent and 

 weak. The seed bed should be carefully prepared, 

 but not a particle of manure of any kind used. Let 

 it be a part of the farm or garden, choosing an open, 

 airy situation, and so\v the seeds on a dry day. 



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WHY SEEDS FAIL TO GROW. 



The general impression is that a seed must grow 

 if planted, no matter when, how or where. Life in 

 the seed form is persistent, and will manifest itself 

 under great difficulties, but it cannot surmount all 

 obstacles that oppose it. There are many reasons 

 why seeds fail to germinate, or to grow after germi- 

 nating; these are but little understood, and because 

 they are not, failures are frequent, and the loss is 

 attributed to poor seed when it should be charged 

 to a want of knowledge of the requirements of 

 plant life. 



A frequent cause of failure is because the seeds 

 are not sown at the proper time. Some kinds are 

 sown too early, others too late. Seeds with a hard 

 outer covering, like the asparagus, should be sown 

 as early as possible in the spring, in fact, they would 

 do better if sown in autumn, particularly if the soil 

 is light, so that the winter's snows do not pack it 

 down, as is the case with clay soils. Frost, or mois- 

 ture, does not injure seeds of this character; on the 



