PLANT-CASES IX TRAXS/T 639 



under shade or cover ; they should not be placed on the lower 

 main deck if on a long voyage, as they would thus be liable to be 

 injured or killed by the sea spray or breakers. The best part of a 

 ship for plants is, as a rule, the upper or boat-deck, but not too 

 near the engines. Plants in an active state of growth will be 

 benefited by an occasional watering, if this can be given by an 

 intelligent hand. Much also depends on the season. Tropical or 

 hot- house plants can only be transported safely over long journeys 

 during the summer months ; while deciduous plants, or those of 

 temperate countries, travel best when in a dormant state, as in the 

 autumn or spring. 



Wardian cases. The following are brief instructions for the 

 guidance of persons sending wardian cases of plants from the 

 tropics. The cases should bs kept on deck, under awning and away 

 from the engines ; direct exposure to the sun, especially if the 

 cases are closed, will injure the plants. A wardian case is easily 

 opened by unscrewing one or both of the glass sides. In tropical 

 seas during fine weather, one of the glazed sides may with 

 advantage be left partly or fully open during the day. The plants 

 may be lightly watered or sprinkled with fresh tepid water at 

 least once in three days. In cool latitudes less watering is 

 required, and the cases should then be protected at night with 

 tarpaulins or additional covering. 



PACKING AND TRANSPORTING SEEDS 



In regard to imported seeds of annuals, \egetables, etc., of 

 temperate countries, it has been found that, provided the seed is 

 properly dried, the best way of transporting them is in airtight 

 tins. Seedsmen who make a speciality of sending such seeds on 

 long journeys pack them in hermetically sealed tins, in a dry 

 atmosphere, so that the seeds are not affected by heat and sweat 

 on the voyage. No packing material of a preserving kind is thus 

 required. A similar method will suit certain tropical seeds ; but 

 these are often of a fleshy non-driable character, naturally 

 unadapted to a dormant period, and require to be packed with a 

 dry (or very slightly moist) absorbent material ; the tins or boxes 

 containing them should not be hermetically sealed, as otherwise 

 fermentation will set in and destroy the seed. Thus, seeds of Para 

 rubber (Hei'ca brasiliensis) which are normally of short vitality, 

 packed in ordinary biscuit tins, with a mixture of dry powdered 

 charcoal and fine soil or coir-dust, have been transported over 

 journeys of six to eight weeks, and at destination gave germinative 



