e; and eighteen or twenty of the smaller size. Transplanting, retards
the growth of a plant about a fortnight. It is best to plant at two
different times, lest the first planting should fail, owing to wet or
cold weather.

_To Plant Garden Seeds._

Make the beds a yard wide; lay across them a board, a yard long and a
foot wide, and, with a stick, make a furrow, on each side of it, one
inch deep. Scatter the seeds in this furrow, and cover them. Then lay
the board over them and step on it, to press down the earth. When the
plants are an inch high, thin them out, leaving spaces proportioned to
their sizes. Seeds of a similar species, such as melons and squashes,
should not be planted very near to each other, as this causes them to
degenerate. The same kinds of vegetables should not be planted in the
same place, for two years in succession.

_On Transplanting._

Transplant at evening, or, which is better, just before a shower. Take a
round stick, sharpened at the point, and make openings to receive the
plants. Set them a very little deeper than they were before, and press
the soil firmly round them. Then water them, and cover them for three or
four days, taking care that sufficient air be admitted. If the plant can
be removed, without disturbing the soil around the root, it will not be
at all retarded, by transplanting. Never remove leaves and branches,
unless a part of the roots be lost.

_To Re-pot House-Plants._

Renew the soil, every year, soon after the time of blossoming. Prepare
soil, as previously directed. Loosen the earth from the pot, by passing
a knife around the sides. Turn the plant upside down, and remove the
pot. Then remove all the matted fibres at the bottom, and all the earth,
except that which adheres to the roots. From woody plants, like roses,
shake off all the earth. Take the new pot, and put a piece of broken
earthen-ware over the hole at the bottom; and then, holding the plant in
the proper position, shake in the earth, around it. Then pour in water,
to settle the earth, and heap on fresh soil, till the pot is even full.
Small pots are considered better than large ones, as the roots are not
so likely to rot, from excess of moisture.

_On the Laying out of Yards and Gardens._

In planting trees, in a yard, they should be arranged in groups, and
never planted in straight lines, nor sprinkled about, as solitary trees.
The object of this arrangement, is, to imitate Nature, and secure s