186 PEEMANENT NUESEEIES. 



only a small percentage may be expected to germinate, the broad- 

 cast system is often to be recommended. 



B. Sowing in lines. 



The lines should of course be straight and parallel amongst 

 themselves and run across the bed. They may be either equidis- 

 tant or two and two nearer together. 



The distance between two consecutive lines or pairs of hnes 

 will vary with the size of the seeds (large seeds will naturally 

 produce large seedlings), the rapidity of growth of the seedlings, 

 and the age at which they are removed. 



The seeds may be sown either on ridges or in furrows. 



B.IDGES. — Ridges may be made by drawing together the soil in 

 lines with a common hoe, or with a special draw-hoe, the crane- 

 necked hoe (Fig. 25). The craning serves a double purpose ; 

 there is no angle to catch soil and thus clog the iron, and the line 

 of draught remains as nearly as possible on a level with the edge 

 of the blade, so that the draw is steadier and the implement less 

 easily turned aside. The ridge may be shaped directly with the 

 hand, or with the ridge-mould (Fig. 26), which is made of iron to 

 prevent clogging and just spans half the width of a bed. The di- 

 mensions of the ridges will depend on the nature of the soil and of 

 the seeds, on the rooting and constitution of the seedHngs, and on 

 whether the seed is sown only in a single row along the top or also 

 on the sides. The formation and maintenance of ridges is both 

 troublesome and expensive, and hence, except in very wet locali- 

 ties, such as we need scarcely ever select for a permanent nursery, 

 or for the special benefit of some particular species, furrows are to 

 be preferred. 



FuKROvrs. — The width of the furrows will depend on the size of 

 the seeds, on the number of rows of seed sown in each, and on the 

 depth itself of the furrows. In practice it is never advisable to 

 sow more than two rows of seed in the same furrow, whereby the 

 arrangement, in which the seedlings stand in equidistant pairs of 

 lines, is secured. The depth of the furrows will depend on the 

 size ef the seeds, on the length of time required for their germina- 

 tion, on the quantity of manure put in with the seed, and on the 

 necessity or otherwise of earthing up the young plants. The larger 

 the seeds are, the thicker will be the covering required. The more 

 protracted the germination, the better must the seeds be protected 

 from drought or cold or birds, and hence the deeper must they be 

 buried. 



