70 



THE G A II 13 E N MAGAZINE 



March, 1918 



in plant them as soon as they are received. 

 Follow the directions sent with the plant 

 carefully, cutting back straggling or broken 

 roots and, after planting, cutting back the 

 top branches to stubs of three to five eyes 

 each. 



In Tho Cellar 



U/^O over all vegetables and fruits that 



^* may be left and remove at once all 



those that show any sign of decay. Watch 



your chance to leave ventilators open for a 



few cold nights and, then as warmer weather 

 comes on, keep all openings tightly closed. 

 D Make a general clean up and be prepared 

 to give good whitewashing as soon as the 

 last things are used. 



In The Tool House 



ALL in order? Get every tool in order and 

 every piece of garden equipment in 

 shape, and ready to use at a moment's notice. 

 □ Every one should be sharpened, oiled and 



adjusted for the kind of work it will first be 

 required for this spring 



D Provide a box of soft grease for rubbing 

 over the blades or other working parts of 

 tools that are not frequently used; rust wears 

 out more tools than use, ten tirVies over! 



D Are all new tools and parts ordered? 

 Order them now even if you don't need them 

 until next July. 



□ Same applies to supplies of sundries, in- 

 cluding labels, pots, fertilizers, insecticides,etc. 



Putting it Simply, for the Beginner 



MAKING HOTBEDS AND COLDFRAMES— SOWING SEEDS— WATERING 



SOWING seeds is so easy that it is 

 really surprising that anybody should 

 have any failures, providing the seeds 

 are of good quality. Of all the details 

 in handling and growing plants it is the most 

 mechanical. It is only justice to the seedsman, 

 however, to add that the seeds are rarely at 

 fault and most failures can be charged to 

 the operator. 



Making Every Seed Count 



FOR the early start and to have plants of 

 certain things to set out in their season it is 

 desirable to sow seeds "in heat"; that is to say 

 indoors or in a hotbed. For this purpose 

 boxes or pans about 3 inches deep with open- 

 ings in the bottom to permit drainage are used. 

 Boxes are better because all the sowings 

 required for a small garden can be made in 

 a couple of boxes that measure 12 x 24 inches; 

 boxes also have the advantage of not "drying 

 out" so rapidly as pots or pans where the air 

 circulates around them freely as the atmos- 

 phere in the dwelling is usually so dry that 

 evaporation is very rapid. 



I~~\ R AINAGE as referred to above is essential, 

 *~* not for the seeds (which require abun- 

 dant moisture to soften the outer shell and 

 burst the jacket), but for the young plant 

 immediately it has taken root. The rootlet 

 and sprout appear simultaneously and if the 

 box be not drained "damping off" will cause 

 trouble. A medium that will allow the water 

 to pass through freely must be placed in the 

 bottom of the seed box; it matters little what 

 you use — sifted cinders, clam shells, coarse 

 screened gravel, or anything of that character 

 will answer the purpose. On top of this 

 drainage in order to prevent the soil from pass- 

 ing through and clogging up the openings, 

 poor coarse manure, salt hay, or excelsior may 

 be used. 



COIL for seeding purposes must be of 

 ^ good "texture" — i.e. loose and friable. 

 As a test take a handful of soil and squeeze 

 it in the palm. The soil particles should 

 adhere so that when pressure is released the 

 mass of soil remains compact giving a perfect 

 mold of the hand, yet when a little pressure 

 is applied it will crumble into a loose mass. 

 If the compost is too light or too dry, it won't 

 hold together; if too heavy or too wet, it won't 

 break apart. In the former case add some 

 heavy garden soil; and use sand to correct 

 heaviness. 



Young seedlings do not need a soil rich in 

 plant food as the tender roots "burn" if they 

 get into contact with rich soil or manure. 



Fresh manure will burn always and for that 

 reason before the boxes are filled the soil should 

 be screened to remove any manure that it 

 might contain. 



A GOOD formula for a seed sowing soil 

 ** is equal parts leaf mould, sand and soil 

 from the garden, screening each separately 

 through a jinch mesh screen. Then mix 

 thoroughly, by turning several times. 



Filling the Boxes 



' I *HE prepared compost is used to com- 

 ■"■ pletely fill the box; this when firmed by 

 pressure will give the proper depth below the 

 sides of the box. This is best done by the 

 fingers of the two hands slightly spread, 

 much as in operating a typewriter. Lack 

 of proper firming will result in failure, a box 

 left loose and spongy will not drain properly, 

 and on the other hand, if too firm or hard the 

 soil will "bake," but this rarely occurs; the 

 proper consistency is when a pencil point 

 forced into the soil and withdrawn will leave 

 a clean opening. After firming the surface 

 should be smoothed and pressed perfectly 

 flat and even with a seed tamp or the bottom 

 of a glass tumbler (See illustrations in last 

 month's Garden Magazine, page 15). 



Sowing the Seeds 



COW in drills in the seed box about 2 

 ^ inches apart or scattered broadcast 

 over the surface. The latter method is pre- 

 ferred because it distributes the seeds more 

 evenly and so gives room for the young plants. 

 Beginners usually sow the seed too thickly 

 which induces "damping ofF." Sow thinly. 

 The ideal is for each seed to have at least \ 

 inch space. Press the seeds into the surface 

 of the soil with the bottom of a tumbler, a 

 piece of board, or other flat surface. Then 

 cover — about twice the depth of the seed is 

 the usual procedure. This may seem like a 

 task for a microscope and delicate mechanical 

 instruments, but it is comparatively easy if 

 you take an old flour sifter or a piece of 

 fine mesh metal mosquito netting, held 

 above the seeds and forcing the soil 

 through with one hand. Again firm the sur- 

 face after covering by using a smooth faced 

 tool and water carefully with a fine rose or 

 bulb sprayer to prevent washing the seeds. 

 There is no particular advantage in using 

 tepid water until after the seeds have germ- 

 inated; then, however, the water should be 

 about the same temperature as the air of the 

 room, and watering may be done by covering 

 the box with a piece of cheesecloth, and a small 

 piece of paper placed just where the water 

 strikes. 



Watering Young Plants 



~^TO FIXED rule can be given as to water- 

 ■*- ^ ing, it depending entirely upon the soil 

 used, the temperature maintained and other 

 matters that control evaporation. The gen- 

 eral principle is to not keep the box too wet, 

 letting the surface get a little dry at times. 

 Where one plant dies of thirst there are thou- 

 sands destroyed by "damping off," which is a 

 parasitical disease induced by overwatering, 

 but can also be caused by overcrowding 

 (which produces similar conditions). If the 

 seed boxes are placed in a window where they 

 have full sunshine, and where a night tempera- 

 ture more than 55 is maintained the seeds will 

 very likely need watering once a day. In case of 

 sowing made a little late, or with slow germ- 

 inating seed, which it is desired to hurry a 

 little, a glass can be laid over the seed box, 

 thus enclosed a high temperature is induced. 

 The glass should be removed when the seed- 

 lings show above ground. 



Making Hotbeds 



' I ''HE difference between a hotbed and 

 -*- coldframe is that the former is heated 

 artificially. When heated by pipes from a 

 greenhouse or garage they are termed "heated 

 frames." The term "hotbed" is generally 

 applied to frames heated by fermenting 

 manure; and they are of wonderful assist- 

 ance to the garden in getting an earlier 

 start and moreover the plants will attain a 

 higher degree of development because of the 

 early start. 



The size of hotbed should be governed by 

 the size of the garden. A two sash hotbed 

 approximately 6x6 ft. is a very good size 

 for home gardens not more than 50 x 50 ft, 

 where they are used only for early starting 

 of such plants as cabbage, lettuce, cauliflower, 

 for setting out in the garden when the weather 

 is favorable. 



Fresh horse manure is necessary in the prep- 

 aration of hotbeds. Manures that have de- 

 cayed are not good for this purpose, as the 

 natural heat of the manure is lost. The frame 

 should be excavated about 16 inches deep, 

 measuring from the top of the front; about 

 8 inches of manure is then placed in the frame 

 and firmed by tamping. In making hotbeds 

 in fall for use over the winter from 2 to 3 feet 

 of manure will be necessary; but for spring 

 work 8 inches is sufficient. The glass surface 

 is protected at night with straw mats or 

 leaves or hay. On top of the manure place 

 about 4 inches of good garden soil and when 

 this is firmed and properly smoothed off", the 

 frame will be ready for sowing seed; but don't 

 fill the entire space as only about one-half of 



