THE SOWING OF SEEDS 



Success in raising plants from seed depends on a 

 combination of several circumstances. The chief of 

 these are the quality of the seed, the provision of the 

 right degree of moisture, the presence of air, and a 

 temperature suitable to the germination of that par- 

 ticular plant. As no conditions can compensate for the 

 absence of vitality in the seeds, it is clearly of the first 

 importance to obtain seeds from a reliable seedsman who 

 has a reputation to lose. For, at any rate as far as the 

 amateur's requirements are concerned, the difference in 

 cost between the very best seeds and those of an in- 

 different quality is comparatively trivial, when one 

 reflects on the expense and trouble wasted through the 

 use of the latter. 



When sowing seeds in the open air, dry and well- 

 drained soil should be selected. It should contain a 

 liberal proportion of gravel or sand, and a small quantity 

 of thoroughly decomposed leaf-mould. There should, 

 as a rule, be no manure used in soil intended for seed- 

 sowing. It is a good plan to pass the top two inches of 

 soil through a sieve, especially in the case of fine seeds. 

 In any event the soil should be thoroughly dug and 

 pulverized to a depth of at least one foot, and the 

 surface raked fine. If this is not done it is practically 

 impossible to provide an even covering for the seeds. 

 Some will be at a depth four or five times that at which 

 others are planted. The depth at which seed should be 

 sown varies with the size of the seed. The smallest 

 seeds should be sown on the surface, the soil having 



