PETUNIAS 



467 



Seed and Seeding 



One package of seed 

 will give you at least 300 

 plants, and by sowing out 

 in January you can have 

 your plants in full bloom 

 in 4s by the middle or end 

 of May and retail them at 

 a higher price than Ge- 

 raniums. Compare that 

 with growing the latter. I 

 am talking from the retail 

 grower's point of view. 

 There is absolutely no 

 more showy bedding plant 

 than one of those giant 

 single Petunias in a 4- or 

 5-in. pot in June; many 

 thousands more could be 

 sold if people were given a 

 chance to see them. 



For large vases or rus- 

 tic tubs you couldn't have 

 a better combination than 

 Balcony Queen and Snow- 

 ball Petunias; nor is there 

 anything better than a 

 porch or veranda box filled solid with Rosy Morns. 



Petunia seed is very small and should never be covered with 

 soil. Take a 12-in. pan, put over the bottom a 1-in. layer of coarse 

 soil followed by nicely sifted soil well mixed with sand, and fill up 

 to within an inch or so of the top. Press firmly, not only in the 

 center, but also around the edges of the pan. Now put on another 

 thin layer of still finer sifted soil, level it, and give the pan two or 

 three doses of water. When dried off a little, sow the seed thinly 

 and gently press it into the surface; follow this with a light spray- 

 ing (making use of a Scollay sprayer) and place the pan on the hot 

 water returns — but place a couple of short pieces of lath on the 

 pipes first. Place a whitewashed pane of glass over the pan and 

 each day apply warm water, always making use of the Scollay 

 sprayer. The surface of the soil should never be allowed to dry 

 out if you want to obtain the highest possible percentage of germin- 

 ation and thrifty plants. 



As soon as the little plants appear, which only takes a few days, 

 bring the pan to the light, but leave the pane of glass on, placing a 

 piece of stick imder one side to allow a free circulation of air. In 



Fig. 234.— Diener's Ruffled Monster Pe- 

 tunias. A "close-up" of seedlings in 4-in. 

 pots. Some of the flowers are beautifully ruf- 

 fled, coming in all shades and colors, and some 

 measure easily six inches and more in diameter 



