April io, 1889.] 



Garden and Forest. 



175 



Sowing and Planting" has been of great value to the planter. 

 By following his instructions, loss of seetls, loss of time, loss of 

 crop, and loss of patience can be avoided. The reasons why 

 firming tlie soil around the seed when planted are so import- 

 ant, can he easily understood. There is stored up in every 

 perfect seed a latent germ, the development of which is con- 

 ditional iii)on the presence of proper proportions of warmth, 



puts forth furnishes the young plant with food ; it simply holds 

 the plant in position until the true or feeding roots are formed. 

 The seed itself contains sufficient food for the infant plant, 

 until its true leaves and roots are formed. 



The feeding rootlets of any plant are delicate fibres, 

 and their furnitiu'e of root-hairs is never seen by tiie casual 

 observer. Now, when the roodets are formed, if the soil is not 



A Japanese Lotus Vase. 



air and moisture. When any seed is put into the ground, and 

 loosely covered with light, dry soil, it is exposed to drying 

 winds which carry away the moisture, while the same circtila- 

 tion of air prevents the persistent warmth which is needed to 

 promote the chemical action needed for germination and 

 growth. It often h;i]ipens that seeds germinate without making 

 growth afterward. When growth commences it is in two 

 opposite directions, upwards into the atmosphei'e, and down- 

 wards into the earth, the two sources from which plant-food 

 is supplied. It is a mistake to suppose the first root the seed 



pressed firmly around the main root, the feeders Iiave nothing 

 to hold to or live upon, but dry up and perish in the open 

 spaces between the loose-lying particles of soil. When the 

 earth is closely packed the )oung rootlets at once find moist- 

 lU'e, which contains food, and find support, as well, in the thin 

 crevices through which they feel their wa-y. In thinning out 

 jilants where they have come up too thickly in the seed-beds, 

 the feet should always be used in pressing the soil firmly 

 around the plants left. 



Deep planting is another cause of the seed's failure to ger- 



