HOME VEGETABLE GARDENING 
COVERING SEEDS 
TV /T ANY gardening failures are traceable directly 
1Y A to f au lty covering of the seeds. They may be 
covered too shallow, when the birds will get some or the 
sun will dry off the shallow-rooting, delicate seedlings; 
or they may be covered too deeply, when the sprouts will 
be smothered or so weakened through the labor of push- 
ing through the soil that they die after reaching daylight. 
A good general rule to keep in mind is to cover seeds to 
the extent of twice their thickness. For illustration, 
radish seeds are about one-sixteenth of an inch in diam- 
eter — cover them from one-eighth to one-quarter inch 
deep. On light sandy soils, deeper covering may be prac- 
tised than on heavy clay soils. 
The exception to this rule are beans, corn, and peas 
which may be covered two to four inches deep, depending 
on character of soil. Specific suggestions how to cover the 
different seeds are made in the different chapters. 
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