The Garden Under Glass

FEEDING AND TOP-DRESSING 241 emission of the liquid. Were the stick pointed it would, of course, make holes in the bag. Another method sometimes used is to get a large cask, and after having duly cleaned it—if used for paraffin— make arrangements on the inside for a sheet of perforated zinc to fit closely against the sides, about one-half of the way down. The manure, of whatever kind it be, may then be put in and the tub filled with water. In passing, the water will, of course, take with it a fair amount of the goodness of the manure, and it may in due course be drawn from the cask by means of a tap fitted. to the bottom. Once the arrangement is fitted up this is, perhaps, the simplest method of making manure-water. It will be noticed that where there is a large heap of manure the water in the vicinity during rainy weather is highly coloured, oft-times bordering on black. Does not this cleai’ly show that a great deal of nutrition is being wasted ? And does not it occur that means are available for making use of it ? The simplest method, of course, is to dig a hole and run the water into this ; it can then be bailed out in a bücket. But the best way is to make a proper cemented square opening in such a position that water will freely flow towards it. In this way much good manure-water may be saved. It would, of course, be necessary to provide it with an overflow to take away the surplus, but in a well-managed gården there would be very little to flow away. Top-dressing Pot Plants It is often advised to top-dress pot plants when well established, but there is another method of adding to the amount of available nutriment which I term " bottom dressing." The method is not often adopted, probably Q