THE GARDEN 



begin. At this stage, hand-pulling will have to 

 be depended on. But a little later, when the 

 flowering plants have made an inch or two of 

 growth, weeding by hand should be abandoned. 

 Provide yourself with a weeding-hook — a little 

 tool with claw-shaped teeth — with which you can 

 uproot more weeds in an hour than you can in all 

 day by hand, and the work will be done in a 

 superior manner as the teeth of the little tool stir 

 the surface of the soil just enough to keep it light 

 and open — a condition that is highly favorable 

 to the healthy development of young plants. I 

 have never yet seen a person who liked to pull 

 weeds by hand. Gardens are often neglected be- 

 cause of the dislike of their owners for this dis- 

 agreeable task. The use of the weeding-hook 

 does away with the drudgery, and makes really 

 pleasant work of the fight with weeds. 



If seedlings are to be transplanted, do it after 

 sundown or on a cloudy day. Lift the tender 

 plants as carefully as possible, and aim to not 

 expose their delicate roots. Get the place in 

 which you propose to plant them ready before 

 you lift them, and then set them out immediately. 

 Make a hole as deep as their roots are long, drop 

 the plants into it, and press the soil firmly about 

 them with thumb and ^nger. It may be well to 



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