on Saintpaulias, begonias, geraniums, roses, 
carnations, hydrangeas, chrysanthemums and 
other cuttings. 

conductor 
Bench for automatic propagation. Pea gravel 
is used on the bottom and coarse propagating 
sand on this. The water level is adjusted 
depending on fineness of sand. Usually one 
to two inohes below the base of cuttings. 
E40 140 Ho HE ae 2 ae OE A te 
THE BENCHES 
The benches must be level Lengenwise of 
the house and nearly watertight. you 
build all benches in a house atone time, 
make them level crosswise of the house to per 
mit all to be connected and operated from one 
water valve. Have a drain, plugged or valved 
on each bench, 
Shallow "V" benches work well, The drop 
should be no more than 2 inches from the sides 
to the center of the bench, Flat-bottom 
Denches are satisfactory also, Sixeinch sides 
inside the bench are high enough. Eight 
tnch sides are also satisfactory. 
For benches more than 150 feet long, 
probably it is best to have the point of in= 
jection for water near the middle of the 
bench so the water may move both ways from 
this point. 
Lord and Burnham at Irvington, New York, 
or Mike Winandy at Richmond, Indiana, make 
cement benches with expansion joints. These 
expansion joints are copper strips bent in 
the form of a V and cemented in. They should 
be spaced at least every 20 feet. The copper 
will soon dissolve in the soil unless it is 
given several coats of asphalt, 
In pasteurizing soil in cement benches, 
use the surface method suggested by Mr. 
Thomas (Cornell Bulletin £635) and raise the 
temperature slowly to allow the cement to 
expand evenly. Cracking is most severe on 
rapid heating. 
The new Lord and Burnham steel bench 
looks promising if a coating can be found 
that will protect the metal for an indefin- 
ite time. We have had one in operation for 
more than one year in our greenhouses. 
FILLING THE BENCHES 
The water conductor can be 3=-inch drain 
tile, 4~inoh half tile, angle iron, or an 
angle of wood. Place it in the V and spread 
pea gravel over the bench bottom to a depth 
of 1 inch at the outside. Add soil to the 
top of this to fill the bench. 

Time switch —- Tensiometer = Automatic valve 
Metal bench equipped for automatic 
watering by the injection method. 
Lord and Burnham Company. 
AE 9-28 4b Ob He HEE HO Oa HE aE EE RE 
WATERING 
After planting, flood the soil from be= 
low to completely saturate it. Then drain 
the water from the bench, If you are running 
a constant water level, set the valve to hold 
the water so it is#4inoh in the bottom of 
the soil in the bench. If you are using the 
injection system, set the equipment to start 
operating immediately when the soil dries to 
one inch of tension. If you are injecting 
the water manually, follow the tensiometer 
and inject about 2 quarts of water to the 
square foot of bench area when the tensio= 
meter reads one inch, Flood and drain the 
bench once each month to re-establish capil- 
larity and leach fertilizer from the surface 
if necessary, 
FERTILIZING 
In preparing the soil, correct it for 
lime and add 5 pounds of superphosphate to 
