NUESEEY PRACTICE ON THE NATIONAL FOBESTS. 17 



PREPARATION OF SEED BEDS. 



Where damage from rodents or birds need not be guarded against 

 the seed beds may be of any desired size. They should be staked 

 off uniformly and with mathematical precision. This will make 

 calculations easy and will make possible the employment of uniform 

 methods in subsequent work. A 4-foot width facilitates sowing, 

 covering, and weeding operations. Forty inches has been found to 

 be a desirable width where burlap is used as a cover. Where dam- 

 age from rodents or birds is possible small beds 4 by 12 feet are 

 desirable, because they are easily protected by the use of the screened 

 frames, to be discussed later. 



To promote capillary action and avoid uneven settling of the 

 soil, particularly where the soil is light and sandy, the beds should 

 either be rolled with a heavy hand roller or thoroughly watered 

 before the final leveling. The leveling and smoothing of the sur- 

 face is done with a rake and should be thorough. It will help in 

 securing an even covering of the seed and uniform germination, 

 for an irregular surface is often responsible for seedlings appear- 

 ing thickly in one spot and thinly in another. 



At one of the California nurseries a special method of leveling has 

 been used. A frame 4 by 12 feet, inside dimensions, is constructed 

 of 1 by 4 inch material, the boards resting on edge. This is sunk 

 about 1 inch into the beds that have been spaded and raked. 

 A section 3 inches wide by 6 inches long is cut out of the lower edge 

 of each end of a board 1 inch by 4 inches by 5 feet, which results 

 in the shape shown in figure 2. The portion of the board which is 

 4 feet long and 3 inches deep is intended to fit within the 4-foot 

 frame, the 6-inch ends resting upon the sides of the frame and 

 serving as handles. The appearance of the frame and board in 

 operation is shown in figure 2. The board, which is called the 

 " planing board," is drawn the length of the bed with the projecting 

 inner 4-foot portion sweeping over the loose soil. As the board is 

 drawn along it may be necessary to fill in with soil any low places 

 in the bed in front of it. The surface of a bed thus prepared will 

 be smooth and ready for sowing. 



A slight modification of the apparatus appears to be more prac- 

 tical. The frame need not be sunk into the bed, but may be rested 

 on the surface of the soil. The projecting portion of the planing 

 board will then have to be as deep as the frame itself. Three-inch 

 material, stiff enough to retain its shape, is wide enough for the 

 construction of the frames. At the Wind River Nursery, where this 

 system is followed, the lower sill of the shade frame is used instead 

 of a special frame. 



63186°— Bull. 479—17 2 



