210 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER 
[ March 14,1P8P 
to possess a great mechanical, if not chemical, action, in hastening 
germination and promoting root action. It is also quite free from 
insects, which cannot often be said of leaf soil, nor, in some 
instances, of peat, which substances are often used instead of 
cocoa-nut fibre to render the composts light and open. In pre¬ 
paring soil for seeds we generally pass a good quantity of sweet 
fresh loam through the half-inch sieve, and then a similar quantity 
of leaf soil or cocoa-nut fibre. The two are then thoroughly well 
mixed together and a part of the heap again passed through the 
quarter-inch sieve, thus forming two heaps of different degrees of 
fineness. A quantity of charcoal broken very small is next sifted 
through the fine sieve, or failing the charcoal, crock dust, which is 
collected from the siftings of crocks used for drainage, this material 
being an excellent substitute for charcoal in keeping the soil sweet 
and porous. To this is added an equal quantity of silver sand, and 
these simple ingredients are then thoroughly mixed together, the 
coarser and finer heaps of soil being kept distinct throughout, and 
together form a compost in which nearly all kinds of seeds germi¬ 
nate freely. Any that are found to require peat can easily have 
that addition made in any proportion necessary. 
The soil being in readiness, the preparation of pans or boxes 
will next require attention. For small seeds we prefer the former, 
which are made about inches in depth and a foot in diameter. 
An inch of drainage is quite enough, but great care should be 
taken to finish off with very small crocks arranged into an even 
and regular surface. Over these place a thin layer of moss or 
leaves, and press some of the soil from the coarse heap into the 
pan, making it moderately firm. Over this place some of the finer 
soil, and press lightly with a circular piece of board kept for the 
purpose, leaving the surface smooth and even. This being done, 
the soil is ready for sowing almost any kind of seed, excepting such 
fine dust-like seeds as Begonias and Calceolarias. For these we 
give another thin coating of soil passed through a very fine wire 
sieve. The soil then receives a good watering through a fine rose, 
and a dash of white sand is sifted over the surface. This addition 
of sand not only serves to keep the soil sweet on the top, but 
enables the operator to see exactly how thickly he is sowing the 
seeds, which are generally of a dark colour, and cannot be easily 
seen when sown on the ordinary soil. 
Fine seeds, such as those above named, will not require water 
after the sowing is completed, but the pans should simply be 
covered with a square of glass (to prevent the surface of the soil 
from drying quickly), and be kept dark by being covered with a 
sheet of paper or a coating of moss. In sowing Cinerarias, Pri¬ 
mulas, and seeds of a like nature, they should be covered with 
about the eighth of an inch of soil, sifted evenly over them through 
the finest sieve, and then be lightly watered through a fine rose. 
Seeds of the above description, with the exception of Calceolarias, 
do wonderfully well in a temperature ranging between 60° and 70°, 
and we like to keep the pans on a moist base, away from the 
hot-water pipes till the seeds have germinated. If placed in a dry 
position the soil is apt to crack away from the sides of the. pan, 
and so render the watering of that part necessary, while the centre 
is quite moist. 
As soon as a few seedlings appear the covering should be re¬ 
moved so as to admit the light, still keeping the square of glass 
fitting closely to the pan for a few days, then gradually inuriDg the 
young seedlings to the moving atmosphere of the house by 
elevating the glass slightly with a label. The next move is to place 
the pans nearer the light on the front stage of the house to prevent 
the growing seedlings from becoming drawn, and if they have been 
gradually prepared by attention to the above details they will bear 
the extra light sunshine without showing signs of distress. After 
they have been in this position for a few days we place two pieces 
of crock on the edge of the pan directly opposite each other, and 
rest the glass upon them. This allows a current of air to pass 
over the plants, which keeps them sturdy, and at the same time we 
find they make much better progress than when the glass is left off 
altogether, and it also prevents the soil becoming too wet from the 
frequent syringings the other parts of the house receive. When 
the soil in the pan becomes dry it is a good plan to hold the pan in 
a bucket of water till it gradually becomes moistened from bottom 
to top, not allowing the water to flow over the rim of the pan, but 
gradually permeate through the soil from the bottom. This is 
preferable to watering with a fine rose, as the soil is more 
thoroughly moistened. 
Seeds with a hard outer covering (“ testa ”), such as Acacia 
lophantha, should be soaked in warm water for a couple of hours 
before sowing. With the object of rendering germination quicker 
and more certain, if possible they should be placed where they can 
have the advantage of a brisk bottom heat. Rhodanthe maculatais 
most effective and useful for growing in pots, and the seed should 
be sown rather thickly in 5 or 6-inch pots, and be covered with 
quite half an inch of soil, otherwise when the young plants are 
a couple of inches high they are apt to fall on one side. Where-, 
large quantities of annuals are required, such as Stocks, Asters,. 
Zinnias, Balsams, a frame should, if possible, be devoted to the 
purpose, and 3 inches of old potting soil passed through the half¬ 
inch sieve be placed within it, with half an inch of finer on the top. 
and made level with a smooth board, then mark out a number of 
squares, sowing each sort in a separate square, cover with fine soil r 
water thoroughly through a rose, and keep close and dark till 
germination takes place. Without being able to secure the ad¬ 
vantage of a frame for this purpose it is surprising what good 
results may be obtained by the exercise of a little ingenuity. I 
often think of the pride I used to take when a boy in my hotbed of 
annuals, and so large a stock did I generally manage to raise that I 
made repeated attempts to curtail the area of the vegetable 
quarters to find room for them ; but I must confess I was not 
always successful in my attempts. A good hotbed of manure and 
leaves made up in some sheltered corner with boards fastened to 
stakes around the edges to keep the soil in position is a useful 
adjunct to every garden for raising annuals and young plants for the 
kitchen garden, a few mats placed over them at night making them 
quite safe from frost, provided the bed is not made up till the 
middle of March, which is quite soon enough to have the annuals 
of good size by the time they are wanted for the flower garden. 
The same beds will continue to do good service throughout thu 
summer months by growing ridge Cucumbers or Vegetable Marrows 
upon them. — H. Dunkin. 
GRAFTING CANKERED FRUIT TREES. 
“ W.” takes exception to my charge against him of begging the 
question, and as proof of his statement “ clearly the cause of the 
canker in some of the trees was not in the soil, but inherent in the 
varieties,” urges that “ useless trees were rendered profitable with¬ 
out anything being applied to the soil or anything done to the roots 
beyond which was effected by the action of the freer and better 
growth of the varieties established on the cankered stocks.” The 
proof adduced really does not affect the question in dispute. We 
are both agreed that grafting another variety on a cankered tree 
frequently cures the disease. From this “ W.” concludes that soil 
has no influence on canker ; while I, on the other hand, suggest 
that it is confirmatory of my statement that one variety will thrive 
where another failed through mal-nutrition. 
My garden, like that of Mr. Garrod’s, is not old, has been 
thoroughly prepared, and evidently contains the essentials requisite 
for the support of many varieties of Pear and Apple, as is proved 
by their healthy growth and heavy crops. Many of the trees 
which ultimately succumbed to canker for years grew strongly and 
bore well, showing no signs of weakness or tenderness. I can only 
suppose, with reference to these trees, that ultimately the free 
growth and fruiting exhausted the soil. Why is it more probable 
that the roots of a healthy tree (these trees before the canker 
appeared had all the signs of being both healthy and strong) shoulc? 
become checked and paralysed, and so unable to absorb a due supply 
of food, than that the tree should become weak and unable to resist 
disease through deficiency of the necessary food in the soil? I 
maintain that the several varieties of any kind of plant may require 
several varieties of food to make perfect growth, and that a 
gardener who does not know this must have been very unobservant. 
I might quote any number of proofs of this, but one is sufficient 
for the purpose. More than a hundred varieties of Strawberries 
have been tested in my garden, and of them about a dozen only 
have fairly succeeded. Notwithstanding the most careful cultiva¬ 
tion some have utterly failed. Has “ W.” never heard the old 
adage, “ One man’s meat is another man’s poison,” or the veracious 
story of Jack Sprat and his wife ? 
*• W.” must multiply his experience threefold before he can 
appeal to it as greater than mine. It is true that I said my atten¬ 
tion was specially directed to plant food in 1886, when I formulated 
some of my sixty years’ experience in an address to the Birming¬ 
ham Gardeners’ Association on plant food, and if he will refer to 
the first and second volumes of the Journal of Horticulture he will 
find that in 1861, under the signature of “ E. T.,” I had atilt 
with a veteran fruit grower, Mr. T. Rivers, on an old delusion of 
gardeners—evidence that I had some knowledge of the subject 
before “ W.” commenced his experience. 
“ W.” asks, “ if different varieties require different food, how 
can any one formula for the Apple answer for all ?” If he refers to 
my Chiswick paper he will find I did not recommend one formula, 
but gave a formula as suitable for the Apple, which might be varied 
as circumstances required. 
Fertile soils contain iron in comparatively large proportions. 
Exceptionally fertile soil, composed of the alluvial deposit of the 
Rhine, contained, according to Baumhaur’s analysis, more than 
