Is important for it is just the form that most of the garden sowing will take. The sowing of seed in hotbeds and flats in the house is of much interest and importance, but the garden, for the most part, will go directly into the open ground, and upon the care and judgment with which the planting is done will depend the success of the season's work. The ground should be in as good condition for sowing as possible—neither too dry nor too wet. It should, and this is of much importance, be warm. The best of seed will not germinate if sown in wet, cold soil, especially is this true of peas and beans, failures with these being almost invariably due to too much haste in planting or unfavorable weather immediately following. It is no unusual thing in a cold, late spring for these In planting a seed drill attached to a hand cultivator will be of great assistance as seed may be drilled in rows or dropped in hills at different distances apart so rapidly that the entire garden may be planted in little more time than it takes The soil must always be firmed above the seed after sowing, either by means of a flat piece of board, with a handle on one surface or, in the case of large seeds by tramping the rows with the feet; this firming of the soil is most important, it brings the soil close about the seed so that the first little root—a very tiny, delicate little root, feeling its way about in search of nourishment can come at once into contact with the warm soil and obtain the food and moisture so critically needed at this juncture of its little life. The firming of the soil conserves the moisture, preventing Seeds of different sizes, hardness and germination qualities, require different treatment; fine seeds may be sown in shallow drills, scattering seeds whose germinary power is known to be low or questionable quite thickly in the drills; beets are usually sown quite freely, while radishes—nearly every seed of which may be trusted to grow—may be scattered at about the distance they are wanted to stand in the rows; beans, too, may be dropped at about the distance they will require—six inches or more apart for limas, and as these seeds are sensitive to cold and dampness it is a wise precaution to set them on edge, eye down, in the drills. Seeds that germinate slowly, like peas, are hastened considerably by Beds It is not necessary that new seed be purchased every spring; if one has seed of his own saving so that its age is known one can use it with confidence. Seed purchased of the seedsman is more or less problematical, but is usually supposed to be of the previous season's crop, especially is this true of those seedsmen who produce their own seed on farms located in different sections of the country, and whose seeds are usually very reliable. However there are many seedsmen, or jobbers, who purchase the bulk of their seeds in the open market and cannot guarantee the quality in any way. It is always a great mistake to purchase cheap seed; it is better to buy seed of a reputable seedsman who puts his name and reputation back of it, though the price may be considerably Where one has sufficient old seed of different kinds it is a good idea to test them out during the late days of winter and so ascertain their fitness for use. The testing is a simple matter, warmth and moisture being all that is required. A long tray covered with an inch of sand kept moist may be marked off in squares and the seed it is desired to test scattered evenly over the surface, labeling or numbering each square, then a thick piece of flannel should be wet in warm water and placed snugly over all and the tray put in a warm place—back of the furnace, over a radiator or on the back of the kitchen reservoir if a fire is kept there all the time, until the seeds germinate; it will then be seen what proportion germinate and how freely one will need to sow in order to obtain a good stand of plants. If the supply of seed is large a germination test of seventy-five per cent. will justify its use but if there is only a limited supply it will be better to In sowing seed in the open ground cultivation should begin as soon as the seed is sown and covered. In the case of large seed which is tramped down in the rows and covered an inch or more it is not always necessary to rake over the rows for a dust-mulch, rarely if it is likely to rain immediately. Under this condition the rows will be quite distinct and as soon as the rain is over and the ground slightly dried off the scuffle-hoe may be run along the rows restoring the dust-mulch, or creating one. Where the planting is shallow it is an excellent plan to drop radish seeds at intervals along the row as these will With the intensive gardening practised on the small plot where the vegetables are planted in close rows from a foot to two feet apart, the ground should be at all times in a fine tilth, free from unworked strips and trodden paths. It is of little value to cut off the weeds with the hoe or cultivator if they are to be trodden back in the ground and so given a new lease of life. The Unless the season is a very rainy one, one good The various weeds with which the garden is afflicted come at separate intervals—not all together, and when one has eradicated one set of weeds there is usually a brief interval before the appearance of the next detachment. But one must have them continually in mind and keep a sharp lookout for the first tiny seedlings and destroy them before they have made even one pair of true leaves. Working around individual plants with a trowel or hand weeder has this advantage that it spies out the enemy before it would attract attention if the rows were worked with hoe or cultivator. The severe thinning that such plants as beets, carrots, endive, salsify, onions and the like require clears the rows of weeds and helps materially in general cultivation. This thinning out should always be done prior to cultivating The first weeds to appear in the spring are the chickweed and the malice Many of the garden weeds may be utilized for feeding stock. Belgian hares are fond of the fresh green leaves of malice and pigs enjoy both that and the purslaine and as the former comes at a time when there is little green feed available for the hares it may be pulled and fed rather than turned under. Ragweed is relished by horses and they will frequently go into a patch of it and eat it in preference to good clover growing near by. |