Drecr' 5 Garden Caleiidar. 41 



DIRECTIONS FOR THE SOWING AND MANAGEMENT OF FLOWER SEEDS. 



Provided the soil is in a proper state, flower seeds may be sown in the 

 open border, in the months of April and May ; the best criterion is the 

 state of the soil. The seeds should be sown as soon as the soil becomes 

 dry and friable, after the spring frosts have disappeared. Care should 

 be taken not to sow in a crowded border, as light and air are indispen- 

 sable. They may also be sown in prepared beds, to be transplanted to 

 the garden. The former is the more simple method, but not always 

 satisfactory, as, during the interval between the sowing of the seed and 

 the period of blooming, the ground occupied is not attractive. The 

 most satisfactory way is to sow all fine seeds under glass, in a frame, or 

 in the house, as the changes of climate, heavy rains and drying winds, 

 with a hot sun, render the surface of the soil unfit for the germination 

 of small seed. As to the depth to which seeds should be covered, the 

 best general rule is to cover fine and light seeds very lightly, just 

 enough to protect them from the sun ; and in extremely dry weather a 

 sprinkling of damp moss is very useful. With very fine seeds it is best 

 to sow on the surface, and press them slightly into the soil. We are 

 convinced that one of the most frequent causes of failure is in sowing' 

 the seeds too deep, and seedsmen are unjustly censured, when the fault 

 lies altogether in the bad management of the cultivator. 



The period of sowing has also much to do with the success or failure ; 

 as a rule, we find the winter months, even with all the appliances a 

 skilful gardener can give, the most unsatisfactory, two notable instances 

 of which came under our own observation recently. Being desirous of 

 raising a stock of plants of the Wigandia Caracasana during the winter 

 for our spring sales, we made repeated sowings, but failed in every 

 instance ; the same seed sown in mid-summer produced a plentiful crojp 

 of plants. Apple Geranium seed sown in the fall furnished but a few 

 plants, while seeds that dropped from the seed plants in June lay until 

 the next summer on the benches before they germinate, subject to the 

 heat and watering necessary to the plants placed thereon. Other gar- 

 deners have related the same experience, where they found the plants 

 growing beautifully on the compost heap after being thrown out of the 

 seed-pans after waiting patiently several months. 



For sowing in pots, or seed-pans, the best soil is a mixture of equal 

 parts of sand, leaf-mould, and loam, which should be thoroughly mixed 

 and passed through a coarse sieve ; then fill your pots or pans within one- 

 half inch of the rim ; press the soil firmly and evenly. If the soil is dry 

 it is best to water freely before sowing the seeds, and after they are 

 sown and covered slightly with fine soil, again carefully watered, to 

 settle the soil down to a uniform surface, using a fine rose on the water- 

 ing pot. We would recommend the French Watering Pot, see page 92. 



The importance of uniform attention to watering may be best learned 

 by experience and observation, but the inexperienced cultivator may be 

 reminded that to omit a single watering and allow the young plant- 

 germs from seed to remain in a parched state, or a too frequent indis- 

 criminate watering, often leads to the eventual loss of the whole. As 

 soon as the plants appear, they will -require your careful attention, as 

 the least over-watering may cause them to " damp off'/' and suddenly 

 destroy all your hopes. They should now have as much sun as possi- 

 ble, and when the weather is pleasant, some air may be admitted. As 

 soon as the plants are large enough to handle, pick them out of the 

 seed-pot; in other words transplant them into another pot, placing them 

 about one inch apart; they must be shaded for a few days from the sun, 

 until they are established. When large enough, they can be planted 

 separately into small pots, and kept thus until the proper season for 

 planting out in the garden. 



