THE AMERICAN BOTANIST 



29 



After seeds are planted, the surface of the ground should 

 not be allowed to dry out. This is probably the most im- 

 portant single condition in raising seedings. It is not enough 

 to water the soil daily, for if the very surface becomes dry 

 between waterings it may affect the result. Alternate water- 

 ing and drying is also likely to puddle the soil and form a crust 

 over it through which the seedlings have difficulty in pushing. 

 The best way is to cover each row as soon as planted with a 

 light mulch of straw, lawn clippings, or the like. This keeps 

 the soil from crusting over, holds in the moisture, and renders 

 daily watering unnecessary. When the young plants appear, 

 part of the mulch may be removed and the remainder left to 

 keep the ground from drying out, the plants growing up 

 through it. Old newspapers or cloth may be used instead of 

 the mulch though they are not so good since they must be 

 removed entirely as soon as the seedlings appear. 



In sowing seeds a good rule is to place them four times 

 their depth in the soil. Very small seeds are simply scattered 

 on the surface and lightly pressed into the soil. These latter, 

 especially, should be covered with a mulch, since many seeds 

 will not grow when exposed to the light, even if the surface is 

 kept moist. It is not always desirable to firm the soil over 

 seeds. It depends somewhat on the nature of the ground in 

 which they are planted. The object in compacting the soil 

 is to bring the seeds into contact with as many moist particles 

 of earth as possible, but when a mulch is maintained this is 

 not necessary and in clay soils it may be harmful by forming 

 a surface too hard for the young plants to penetrate. 



After the seedlings appear one is not always warranted 

 in assuming that success has been attained. In plants that 

 form partnerships with the bacteria, such as the legumes — 

 plants belonging to the pea family — the proper bacteria may 

 be absent and thus the young plants may languish and die. 



