Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1885-03-12
SEEDS.
How to Save Them without Destroying
Their Vitality.


| Mr.. Samuel Lawrence call attention
to the Inconvenience, loss. Il al vrxation
caused by 4 lack of good seed. IT.
careful preservation has been urgcd for
thousands of years and still many per
sons are both carele : and indifferent
about the matter. Most gA.l.n prod
acts are rot perennial, but require
annual care, and hence aS each Sprin.
returns theirs comes with it the usual
grrmbling about worthless seed. This
cause, many to make good resolves for
the future but when harvest { me comes
the same old neglect is practiced with
Indifference only TO be followed BY an
other lesson of "sad experience.
Growing. gathering apd preserving
seed lies at the foundation ol good gar
!ening. 4 person who can not carry
out these operations VIII ncyc:. make q
successful gardener. He Will always be
depend M on Others, and rs Il natural
consequence Will often get fooled
In selecting seeds. Mr.. Lawrence SAYS.
his experience has beer th3 the best
seed. and the greatest guam ity. is OBJ
itIEctt lIOIu Il Scll tIlsit = nttuTdIlN
good. but not excessively enriched. \
very rich soil in most ease develops
Collage rather than fruit >ceh-pants
should have more space than : general
Il allowed them by market growers
They need plenty of nourishmcnt light
and air. Ii depr we'd of these essentials
the seed will lack fllllncsS, be deficient
in weight and large percentage will
prove abortive.
Plants. ard seeds as well. are injured
by intermixture In this particular few
pcOTic grow plants proper or save
seed iyt!iciouSly. Different 'as>es will
not readily he affected b. c. .t;vation in
the &c nifty OF each other bu different
spec cS of he same class W u mix with
great facl ty. With all boianically
allied plants. if to be grown for seed.
{ re best course is to sow the varieties
well apart from each other
There seems TO be strange fascina-'
ton IN size, but il must be remembered
that excellence is MOI always known BY
magnitude. We cultivate the small
fruits 10 their utmost perfection. but
many OF oyer-grown vegetables. as po-
tatoes bects, radi,he: or tur fps. when
worthle : for the table lie. the choice
be rather for smoothneSs and symmetry
than for size. Among the umbcllifcro1-
plants, it is the prevailing opinion shat
the central umbel produces the finest
seeds. Yet when sufficient amount OF
room is gwen the side shoots are usually
well developed, and where they mature
in season there can be no serious OBJ
lection to them. Certain rules con
stantly observed from year to year in
the selection of seed will make the plant
dwarfish or increase in size. The variety
can be made to mature earlier at en-
pense of production, or later with in
creased yield.
Seeds should not be gathered until
fully ripe. After gathering they should
be thoroughly dried and stored in dry
and well ventilated apartments. Large
quantities IN one place should not be
permitted. for however airy and dry the
place may be they are extremely liable
to generate heat and lose their vitality.
Heat or cold which is not ar fetal will
not lnjure seeds, but q slight dampness
and degree of heat which they ar
often in, will induce the first stage
termination or mold. either Il VII
sufficient to destroy the VITALITY
Where the quantities to be
too great. a good way is 70
in strong paper in small
inclOse in q strong ba
them from the rafters in
house, or some similar
for in this manner the
repaid by lessening
making certain the
years vegetables. w