CHE REFERENCE LIBRARY - ZetaTalk

50 THE N [JRSER I’--MA N IT.4 I;muslin may be utilized in the same way, although this is apt to adhere tothe soil. Pots and small pans can be immersed nearly to their rims in abucket of water, allowing the liquid to saturate the soil from below upwards.After the sowing and waterin g are completed, keep the frame or housefairly close until germination has, taken place, after which ventilationmust be afiord& as freely as outside conditiorx will admit. Give waterwhenever the soil is at all dry, but avoid overdoing it. Remember, seediingsin an eariy stage do not want large quantities of water; but, on theother hand, they must not be allowed to become dry.”Sou?iag sporesFerns, lycopodiums and selaginellas are often grown fromspores. Th e general conditions required for the germinationof very fine seeds are a.lso suitable for the germination of spores,but extra care must be taken with the drainage. If a pot isused, it should be half or more filled with drainage material,and the soil should be made loose by the addition of bits ofbrick, charcoal, (binders or other porous materials. The surfacesoil should be fine and uniform. Some persons place athin 1aJver of brick-dust on the surface, in which the spores areso1y-n. It is a8 frequent practice to bake the soil to destroy otherspores that might cause troublesome growths.The spores should be sprinkled on the surface and not covered.The pot should be set in a saucer of water, or in damp moss,and it should be col-ered b>T paper or a pane of glass if the sunstrikes it or it is in a draughty place. Better results are obtainedif the pot or pan is placed inside a propagating-frame oru~cler a Ml-glass. Tn place of earth, a block or small cubes offirm peat or sandstone may be employed Wig. 3 right ; Fig. 5).The blwk is plawd in a saucer of water and the spores aresown 011 its surfaw. Water should not. be applied directly tothe spores, as it. dislodges them.The period of germination varies in different species, butthree to six weeks army he wusidered the ordinary limits.Spww aw SO eswedingly small and light that the greatest