116 CULTIVATION. 



air, the flowers will attain considerable perfection. 

 But the tubers, it is more than probable, will not 

 be so strong to flower the following year. The 

 store of vigour in the tuber is exhausted by the 

 excitement of the spring season in a de2;ree 

 greater than there is time for an equal replenish- 

 ment : and it may be safely repeated, that success 

 from spring-planting is only in a degree, and 

 certainly less than would follow equally fortunate 

 autumn-planting. 



There are only a few particulars in which the 

 management of the ranunculus di tiers from that 

 of the anemone. The first is in preparing the 

 seed for sowing, which instead of being separated 

 by rubbing amongst sand, is scraped from the 

 receptacle with a blunt knife ; dividing it so as 

 not two or more remain together in the husks. 

 The next particular is in the planting ; that care 

 be taken not to bury the tubers deeper than an 

 inch and a half The bed, too, besides the natural 

 tendency of such a compost to settle closely to- 

 gether, should be, in some degree, consolidated by 



