The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1880-04-16
Sowing Vegetable Seeds,

II may be well 10 remind some of our
Younger readers of the three requisites
Tor starting the seeds of early sown
vegetables: Let the soil be we'll pulver-
lied. sufficiently moist, and do not
plant too deep. The seeds of such
plants as parsnips, peas, lettuce, ETC.,
which are not cut down by frost, NAV
be safely planted as early as the ground
is ready. The soil must be we'll pulycr-
lied, and neither in Jumps nor in a wet,
adhesive mass. This is the first reouis-
ite. 1t must be sufficiently moist.
which is nearly always the case early in
the spring without much care. The
third point is not to plant too deep.
Seeds are sometimes buried beyond the
reach OF the air, and lie dormant. or
rot. Many sorts buried three or four
inches under the surface are in no bet
ter condition than if thrown awav. II
only an inch, nearly all will grow.
Seedsmen are sometimes denounced for
selling bad seed, merely because the
purchaser has placed them where thev
cannot germinate. The smaller the
seeds, the shallower should be the GOV.
ering, and the best mode is by sitting
fine earth over them. The depth will
of course vary, but the best general
rule is to cover them more than
five times their diameter in depth
rather less is better. They will come
up frequently at q greater depth, but a
long time will be required, and the
plants for a time will be feeble. A
greater depth is admissible in a sandy
than in a heavy or clayey soil, and with
a dry than in a quito moist soil. A
light pressure may be made on the sur
face after the seeds are planted, and a
heavy one, even to the tread of the
foot, on a dry soil. Peas will come M
from a considerable depth, and will
succeed better and bear longer than
when planted shallow. If Young gar
deners will experiment at different
depths with various seeds. and with va.
riOus degrees of compression of the sur
face, they will soon acquire more of
good practical knowledge on the SUBJ
ject than by means of volumes of writ
ten directions; aud such experiments
are very easily made, care being taken
to keep a record of all the various plant
ings to prevent mistakes of memory.
II happens often that heavy soils are
kept too wet TO work to advantage I'M
ill the opportunity for sowing early has
passed. IL The ground has been previ-
Ousiy prepared, 30 that it presents a
clean surface, the sowing NAV be made
directly on the top, without disturbing
II, or making drills, covering the seeds
by sitting on them dry and pulycrized
soil from some dry or sheltered spot
(the operator standing on a board,) and
in this case one-half of the usual deptb
will answer, as they will obtain a sup
ply of moisture freely from below, and
"a fine covering need not be 80 thick as
a course one. In all cases, pressing
the surface 10 usefnl and renders GER
mination more certain by bringing the
moist particles in closer contact with
the seed-provided it is not sufficient
To cause the earth to adhere In a mass
and become baked hard when it dries.
Careful observation and practice will
soon enable any n 10 know just when
the right degree of pressure is uscd.
Much less is needed for early sown
seeds than for the tenderer kinds a
month or two later, when dry and
warm weather may have set in.
Mistakes are often made by suppos-
ing seeds always grow best If the SOW
ing is followed by rain. On the CON-
trary, they more frequently succeed
better II sowed after a rain. On a soil
already wet enough, tho operation
should be performed before rain, as it
may be too plastic afterwards. But
when the Garth inclines to be rather
dry, aud crumbles into hard, small
Jumps, these prevent close contact with
the seed, and are in better condition,
and crumbles finer, after being mois-
tened and partly softened by a shower.
Country Gent.