f 
7 
thousand times larger. Now tlieir ‘ differ¬ 
ence in treatment is almost as great as 
their difference in size. Now the treat¬ 
ment of these is the matter I wish to treat. 
In the first place there are three essentials 
in the germination of seeds, to wit: First, 
a fine humus soil, whether it be in the open 
ground or in prepared boxes. 
Second, heat and darkness. 
Third, moisture. 
These are the natural requirements of all 
Seeds. Without these germination is a fail¬ 
ure. The old saying, “Test all things, and 
hold fast to that which has proved good.” 
I will give you my mode of testing seeds, 
and their after treatment. (Such as are 
usually planted in our home gardens.) First 
is the preparation of the seed bed. For cab¬ 
bage, tomatoes, egg plant, peppers and cel¬ 
ery, I use a soil composed as follows: i leaf 
mould, i sand and d soil from a spent hot¬ 
bed; mix these thoroughly, then pass 
through a medium coarse sieve. For start¬ 
ing buds in doors I use fiats or boxes made 
from soap boxes, sawed twice in too; a box 
two inches deep is deep enough; now place 
a layer of spagnam moss over the bottom, 
then fill two-thirds full of soil, press down 
well, then water copiously, then sift dry 
moss to the depth of $ inch, now fill the box 
with fine soil well pressed down; now mark 
lines i inch deep and inches apart; for 
cabbage and tomatoes sow seed I inch 
apart: press the soil evenly; now sift dry 
moss to the depth of 4 inch, then water 
and set in a temperature of 65 to 75 degrees; 
if you have a number you can pile them on 
top of each other. Good cabbage seed will 
germinate in from 4 to 6 days, tomatoes 
6 to 10 days. This is the plan on which we 
test all seeds, both flowers and vegetables; 
the depth of planting is in proportion to 
the size and vitality of the seeds. 
For out-door seed-bed I would dispense 
with the bottom layer of moss; thoroughly 
pulverize the soil and have it free from 
lumps. For celery I would sow in boxes 
same as for cabbage, only use more sand on 
top of the seed; sow seed i of an inch deep 
as soon as your ground is dry enough to 
work and your seed commenced to germi¬ 
nate ; sow seed and sand in drills in open 
ground. 
RECAPITULATION. 
To the querist the use of sphagnam moss 
is a my stery, to the advanced gardener it is 
essential to success; in application it is of 
a three-fold nature, it holds heat and moist¬ 
ure; the second layer is for the small root¬ 
lets to branch out in; it being of a humas 
nature, they early penetrate it, and if you 
wish to use any stimulant bone dust 
can readily be mixed with the moss, 
and give the plant more. Now as to top 
layer of moss, it is lighter, and retains heat 
and moisture better than soil. 
TREATMENT OF SEEDLINGS. 
The transplanting of cabbage and toma¬ 
toes is an essential thing, especially of the 
latter. I transplant when the second leaves 
are well out. I prepare a flat similar to my 
seed-box, omitting the moss: I fill the box 
two-thirds full of soil, with a little dry 
moss mixed, also a little bone dust; I then 
use a cutter some three inches wide, and 
planed to an edge as long as your flat is 
wide; in its application 1 insert the edge of 
the’cutter one inch deep, then draw it 
towards me, making a channel three- 
fourths of an inch deep and slightly in¬ 
clined ; now with a narrow trowel take up 
your plants by inserting it about one inch 
under the plants and lift them out. Do not 
pull your plants, it breaks the small root¬ 
lets. Now take the plants in your left hand 
and place in the trench one inch apart. 
Now with your cutter, placed some two 
inches from the first trench, draw the soil 
close to the plant; then turn your cutter 
flat down and press the soil down on your 
plants, repeat this until your box is full; 
now water thoroughly and set in the shade 
for a day or two; do not water until the soil 
looks dry on the surface; too much water is 
apt to damp off your plants. Now this is 
the process I adopted with all my plants 
from seed. Tomatoes I transplant as often 
as every two weeks. 
TIME TO SOW SEEDS. 
We differ so much it is hard to say who is 
right. Our climate is so changeable, es¬ 
pecially in the spring months, what might 
do for last spring, would not for this ; even 
Yennor missed it. My plan is this: for early 
cabbage I sow in flats the second week in 
March; for early celery I sow from the 15th 
