Propagation 81 



soft damp soil or a bed of saturated moss until they can 

 be packed and shipped out. The plants do not develop 

 uniformly, and in pulling many small plants must be 

 left for further growth. A well-developed root system 

 is very desirable and if the bed has been properly pre- 

 pared with sand no diiBculty will be experienced in this 

 regard. Much time may be saved in the field if the 

 plants are orderly and systematically handled at the 

 plant-bed. All roots should be turned in the same direc- 

 tion and if a machine is used for transplanting, it will 

 often be necessary to trim off long or irregular tops with 

 a knife. It is essential that draws planted by machine 

 be in the best possible condition if they are to be effi- 

 ciently handled by the boys who sit on the back and feed 

 the plants into the machine. Mmbleness is necessary 

 under the best of conditions and if the plants are ir- 

 regularly arranged and grown together, many skips 

 in the field will be the result. 



In very dry weather or when a small area is to be set 

 by hand-dropping the plants, growers sometimes have at 

 haftd a large tub containing a mixture of an equal part 

 of clay and cow-manure mixed to the consistency of a 

 thin slime with water. As the plants are pulled from 

 the bed, they may be taken in small bunches and their 

 roots dipped into this mixture. This " puddling " pro- 

 cess, though of some value, is now seldom used because 

 of the disagreeable feature of handling the plants with 

 mud-covered roots. The plants should never be allowed 

 to stand in such a mixture for any length of time, as 

 they will shed their leaves. 



In preparing plants for shipment, conunercial grow- 

 ers usually tie them in bundles of 200 each with soft 

 cotton twine. Perhaps the most economical method of 



