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J. STECKLER SEED CO., LTD., ALMANAC AND 



SOWZBTG SEEDS 



Some seeds are sown at once where 

 they are to remain and mature. Others 

 are sown in seed beds and transplanted 

 afterwards. Seeds should be covered ac- 

 cording to their sizes, a covering of 

 earth twice the size of the seed is about 

 the maximum. Some seeds, such as 

 Beans, Corn and Peas, can be covered 

 from one to two inches, and they will 

 come up well. Here is a difference again: 

 Wrinkled Peas and Sugar Corn have to 

 be covered lighter and more carefully 

 t_an Marrowfat Peas or the common 

 varieties of Corn, It depends upon the 

 nature of the soil, season of the year, 

 etc. For instance, in heavy wet soils, 

 seeds have to be covered lighter than 

 in sandy light ground. Seeds which are 

 sown during summer in the open ground, 

 such as Beets and Carrots, should be 

 soaked over night in water and rolled 

 in ashes before sowing; they will come 

 up quicker. When they are sown in 

 a seed bed, the ground should be 

 lig'ht enough not to bake after a rain. 

 Some varieties of seeds require shade 

 when sown during summer, such as 

 Cauliflower, Celery and Lettuce. Care 

 should be taken to have the shade at 

 least three feet from the ground, and 

 shade only after the sun has been on the 

 bed for two or three hours; and remove 

 again early in the afternoon so the plants 

 may become sturdy. If too much shaded 

 i_ey will be drawn up, long-legged, and 

 not fit to be set out in the open ground. 

 The most successful Cabbage planters 

 sow their seeds in the open ground, 

 towards the '^j.d of July and dur- 

 ing August, and give them no shade, 



but water and keep the ground moist 

 from the day of sowing until the 

 plants are transplanted. Seeds should 

 be sown thinly in the seed bed. If plants 

 come up too thickly they are apt to damp 

 off. 



Lettuce seed should be sprouted dur- 

 ing the hot months before sowing, ac- 

 cording to directions given for June. 



To sow Turnips on a large scale dur- 

 ing the late summer and early fall 

 months, the ground should be prepared 

 in advance and the seed sown just be- 

 fore or during the rain. Small pieces of 

 ground, of course, can be sown at any 

 time and watered afterwards. For cover- 

 ing all kinds of seeds a fork is preferable 

 to a rake; with either implement care 

 must be taken not to cover the seeds 

 too deep. Beans, Peas and corn are 

 covered with the hoe. Some line seeds, 

 such as Thyme and Tobacco, are .covered 

 enough when pressed with the back of 

 the spade to the ground. The seedsman 

 is often blamed for selling seeds which 

 have not come up when the same are per- 

 fectly good, but, perhaps, through ignor- 

 ance, the party by whom they were sown 

 placed ithem too deep or too shallow in the 

 ground, or the ground may have been 

 just moist enough to swell the seeds and 

 they failed to come up. At other times 

 washing rains after sowing beat the 

 ground and form a crust that the seeds 

 are not able to penetrate, or if there is 

 too much manure it will burn the seeds 

 and destroy their vitality. 



When seeds, such as Beans, Cucum- 

 bers, Melons, and Squash, are planted be- 

 fore it is warm enough, they are very apt 

 to rot if it rains. 



asmMIl^ATIMG SEEDS. 



Complaints are often made to seeds- 

 men by inexperienced Truck farmers 

 and Planters, that certain varieties of 

 garden and field seeds are slow in com- 

 ing up or fail entirely. The fault, as a 

 general rule is mostly the gardeners, but 

 the seedsman invariably gets the blame, 

 mostly unjust and groundless, but he is 

 blamed and often abused nevertheless. 

 For the guidance of those who are inex- 

 perienced we deem it necessary to lay 

 down the following rules: 



1. Never sow out of time. Many of 

 our Truck farmers are in the habit of 

 sowing too soon and in consequence are 



often compelled to sow double the quan- 

 tity to get a good stand. As to the pro- 

 per time for sowing read our directions 

 j for planting. 



2. Do not cover seed too deep, it will 

 I be impossible for the finer varieties to 

 I push through, especially if the soil is 

 ! heavy and claylike. The rule, is never 

 I to cover seeds more than twice their 

 thickness, except the finer ones which 

 require no covering at all. They should 

 be slightly pressed in the ground to pre- 

 vent their being washed away. 



Beans, Peas and Corn should be 

 covered 14 to V2 inoh according to the 

 nature of the soil. 



Steckler's Prepared Mocking Bird Food has no Equal. 



