GROWING OF PLANTS FROM SEEDS. 289 



The glass should be slightly tilted to afford access of air. 

 For holding the soil, shallow wooden boxes or flats 

 answer every purpose, although some florists prefer 

 unglazed, earthenware seed pans ; in either case, thor- 

 ough drainage must be provided by means of holes or 

 cracks in the bottoms. 



When only a few of a kind are to be sown, a shal- 

 low cigar box will answer for small seeds, and boxes with 

 a depth of from one or one and one-half to two and 

 one-half inches, according to the size of the seeds, are 

 ample. In large establishments, the seed beds can, if 

 desired, be made upon the greenhouse benches, thorough 

 drainage being provided for. 



The soil for the seed bed varies to some extent with 

 the character of the plants, but, as a rule, the same soil 

 -IS is used for potting will answer, although it will be 

 improved by the addition of twenty-five per cent of sand, 

 especially for covering the seeds. The depth of cover- 

 ing will vary with the size of the seed, but, under glass, 

 it will be from three to five times their diameter, while 

 in the open ground it will be about fifty per cent deeper, 

 varying with the character of the soil. While seeds 

 may be sown broadcast, it will generally be found best 

 to have them in drills about one inch apart for small 

 seeds, and two inches for the larger ones. 



In filling the boxes with soil, pains should be taken 

 to press it into the corners, and we must not forget the 

 necessity of leaving the soil slightly below the edge, to 

 prevent the water running off. The proper depth of 

 soil for covering the seeds, when they need one-eighth of 

 an inch or more, can be secured in various ways ; one 

 being by making shallow trenches across the seed beds, 

 slightly deeper than the covering needed and, after sow- 

 ing the seed, filling the trenches; while another is by 

 filling the box so that, for seeds that require covering a 

 quarter of an inch, when the soil has been leveled off 

 19 



