Seed Sowing Suggestions 
By Wm. N. Craig 
{Continued from August issue.) 
COMING to seeds of tender greenhouse plants, such 
varieties as gloxinias, tuberous begonias, gesnerias, 
tydaeas and others with very fine seeds should be 
sown in pans of prepared compost as recommended for 
petunias and other garden annuals. The greatest care is 
necessary in sowing each of these ; pans must be watered 
before and not immediately after seed is sown, sheets 
of glass should cover all pans, and paper or cloth be 
placed over this to exclude sunlight and prevent drying 
out ; gradually remove the coverings as germination 
starts. Calceolarias have fine seeds and a fine dusting 
of sand is all the covering they need ; over cinerarias 
should be placed a little fine earth ; the same is true of 
primulas. Cyclamens like a very light covering of fine 
sandy soil. The proper time to sow gloxinias, begonias 
and gesnerias is January ; primulas sinensis, obconica 
and kewensis should be started in January or February, 
but the beautiful and decorative P. malacoides not until 
July ; calceolarias and cinerarias can also be started in 
July and cyclamens in August. Schizanthus, nemesias, 
calendulas, mignonette, statices and other annuals for 
flowering under glass should be sown in August and 
September, and snapdragons for early winter flowering 
not later than May 15. All greenhouse seeds sown in 
winter need a warm, moist house in which to germinate. 
Seeds of such palms as cocos, phoenix, kentia and 
latania, if fresh, usually germinate readily if sown in 
pans and plunged in a brisk bottom heat in a warm 
house. Anthuriums want similar treatment, but like to 
be sown in a mixture of chopped fern root and sphag- 
num moss. Seeds of crotons, dracaenas, marantas and 
various tropical plants all need a brisk moist heat. 
Cannas have very hard seeds and start better if some of 
the shell is cut with a sharp knife, taking care not to cut 
the growing point ; seeds should be soaked in tepid water 
for 24 hours before sowing; moonflowers need similar 
treatment. Sweet peas, especially light shelled varieties, 
if trimmed with a knife, also start better, and this plan is 
suggested for the more valuable varieties to be started 
under glass. Cobaca scandens, a popular climber, 
germinates better if the seeds are stood edgewise in the 
pots or pans. 
Orchid seeds require radically dififerent treatment 
from those of all other plants. Seed pods of cattleyas 
usually ripen about a year after fertilization : a pod will 
contain anywhere from 200,000 to 500.000 seeds which 
are remarkably fine and light. All orchid seeds germi- 
nate best if sown in spring ; they are less certain if 
started in summer or winter. I have had the best suc- 
cess with cattleyas, laelio-cattleyas, and other bi-generic 
hybrids, also cypripediums, by sowing the seeds on 
coarse bath towel or burlap stretched inside a glass case, 
the same being damped before seeds are sown, or in 
filling 4 inch pots with chopped fern fibre and over the 
tops laying pieces of bath towel and tucking them 
closely down the inside edges of the pots with a poirited 
stick, having the surface raised and well rounded. Seed 
can be sown at the rate of 20,000 or more per square 
inch : sometimes none will germinate, the seed being 
barren, at other times one or two may start, but some- 
times the surfaces will be covered with tiny seedlings : 
these not infrequently start from the sides of the pots. 
Sometimes seedlings will appear within a month, at other 
times not for si» or more months ; great care is neces- 
sary in spraying, ventilating and shading the cases, and 
insect pests and fungoid growths must be fought. Un- 
der the most favorable conditions seedlings may flower 
in three to five years, but many of the best crosses re- 
quire double that length of time. The orchid seedling 
raiser must be a pure specialist ; he needs lots of patience 
nad must never be of a nervous temperament. 
Aquatic plants such as Nymphaeas and Nelumbiums 
germinate well if seeds are sown in small pots singly 
and submerged in tanks or trays of warm water in a 
warm house ; if started in early spring the majority will 
attain sufficient size to flower the first season. 
Ferns are raised from spores which when ripe should 
be cut off, placed in small bags, kept for a few days and 
then sown in square pans of a compost consisting of 
equal parts loam and peat with a good dash of sand 
mixed with it, and sterilized in advance ; pans must be 
watered before spores are sown and pans must be kept 
in a close moist case to ensure good germination. 
The propagation of trees and shrubs from seeds would 
use up an entire afternoon in itself if gone into at all 
thoroughly; I can only refer to a few of each. The 
propagation of both trees and shrubs is left almost en- 
tirely in the hands of nurserymen, with the exception 
of a limited number of private estates and such institu- 
tions as the Arnold Arboretum. There is no good rea- 
son why many more small growers should not do a little 
of this propagating as many varieties come very easily 
from seed ; in many cases starting almost as quickly as 
our common annuals. 
The various pines, spruces, firs and thujas can be 
sown in early May in open frames in well pulverized soil 
which should be levelled and then well watered ; sow the 
seed broadcast rather than in drills, as the plants must 
remain at least one year in the seed beds ; after seeding, 
sift a light covering of fine loam over the beds, cover 
this with a mulch of leaves slightly decayed. A safe plan 
is to enclose the ground or grounds with fine mesh wire 
netting to prevent birds or animals entering and scratch- 
ing, and later cover the top with burlap. In about 30 
days seedlings (under normal conditions) of pines and 
spruces will be germinated sufficiently so that the mold 
can be removed. Seeds of evergreens are light. A 
pound of white pine will average 15,000 to 20,000 seeds 
and one of red pine 28,000 to 30,000, and if the seed is 
fresh the larger proportion should grow. In small 
batches evergreen tree seeds can be sown in pans or 
shallow flats in an ordinary greenhouse. All evergreens 
do not start so readily as those named, however, and in 
the cases of most of the junipers and yews, germination 
is slow, seeds frequently not starting until the second 
year. As between sowing seeds of the slow germinating 
ones in fall or spring the former season is best if a 
greenliouse is at command, the seeds being then fresher. 
Rhododendrons, kalmias, andromedas, callunas, ericas 
and azaleas start best in pans of sandy peat, over which, 
a thin layer of fine dry sphagnum moss is screened ; the 
seed can be sown over this, and water then applied 
through a fine rose ; seed will germinate much better 
sown on moss than direct on the soil ; a temperature of 
55° will suit those seeds in the early stages of growth. 
Nuts of various inds, also acorns, are better sown soon 
after harvesting and exposed to frost which loosens the 
shells and makes germination more easy. If not sown 
in late fall, it is better to carry them over winter in moist 
sand. Fruits of many plants including cotoneasters, 
335 
