22 The Book of Annuals 



thick sod. The leaf mold may be scraped from some 

 hollow in the woods where leaves have collected for 

 years. The manure must be old, black and so thor- 

 oughly rotted that it is like fine black soil. Turn 

 this mixture over and over on a platform or in a large 

 box, with a spade, to make it uniform throughout. 

 Then put into the bottom of the flats a bottom layer 

 of cinders, gravel, coal ashes or even excelsior — any- 

 thing that will secure drainage for the under part of 

 the soil. On this put the prepared soil to the depth 

 of two or three inches, sifting the top half-inch or 

 inch on through a fine sieve — a piece of screen wire 

 mesh stretched over the bottom of a box will serve 

 nicely. See that the box is tapped to settle the soil 

 and then make the top surface even. 



At this point it will be well to pour boiling water 

 over the flats of soil. This will kill any insect or plant 

 life that might trouble us later. On the next day the 

 soil will probably be in good condition for planting. 

 Smooth the top and mark out with the edge of a 

 board the necessary tiny drills or trenches in which 

 the seed is to go. These need not be over two inches 

 apart but should run the whole length or width of 

 the flat. If but one or two kinds of seed are used 

 in the flat, it may be more convenient to broadcast it 

 rather than sowing in drills, although it seems to 

 be easier when transplanting to take the little seed- 

 lings from a drill. 



It is a general principle that seeds sown indoors in 

 flats should be covered by a depth of soil equal to 



