GROWING ON THE SEEDLINGS.

If after recording all your seed in the record book and sowing the seed, you eventually get seedlings, how do you grow them on to mature plants? The following is the method that I have used successfully for a number of years. The pots that were put outside for a cold spell in the winter usually start to germinate at the end of February or early march. But don't despair if they do not, for sometimes they come sporadically until June or later, and may not appear until next year.

I make a point at this time of the year to inspect all seedpots at least three times a week. Anything that shows the slightest sign of germinating is brought into the alpine house immediately. This is more for my convenience than for the seedlings, and a gold frame or even a sheet of glass will serve the same purpose. It is easier for to keep an eye on moisture levels, which are critical at this stage, and to avoid slug damage when they are at waste level, and it also stops the heavy rain from beating them to pulp.

It is surprising how much moisture is required at the germinating stage for all seedlings, even those like Dionysias that like a dry atmosphere when they get older, this is the cause of most failures in seed raising techniques.

The seed pots can be placed in full sunshine at this time of the year as the sun in not very strong, but great vigilance is required as to watering requirements. I usually make an early morning inspection and water everything that looks like it might dry out before the end of the day. If you use a well-drained soil based compost as I do, then over-watering is not usually a problem. (Peat based compost will have to be treated differently at this stage.) After all if they were still outside they would get rain almost every day.

In about four weeks the seedlings are ready for picking out, and as only a few of each variety are required, I tip the pot out on the bench and carefully separate the long roots. They are then potted up in the same size pot, of which fifteen fits in a standard seed tray, and placed under the bench for two days to recover form the trauma.

As the sun will be getting stronger at this stage they will need shaded when placed back on the bench, at least in the middle part of the day. A liquid feed is given every two weeks of dilute tomato feed, about one teaspoon in a (imp) 2 gallon can. This keeps them compact as it contains lots of potash and helps to produce flowers.

At the end of May most of the seedlings are put outside and left open to the elements, with the exception of those that do not like constant saturation of the foliage as they get older.

Lewesias and some of the primulas fall into another category that do not like summer rain as they take a little rest in the summer before starting into growth again in the autumn. The South African bulbs, which prefer to be sown in the autumn, germinate very quickly in the early spring and they usually stay in the alpine house until the weather starts to get warm. They are then moved to a cool north-facing frame to try and keep them growing as long as possible.

The onset of warm weather is a signal for these plants to slow down and go to sleep for the summer. So if you can keep them cool you will get an extra few weeks growth, it makes a big difference to the size of the new bulbs, and gives a much better survival rate. There are of coarse always a few exceptions, and some of the South African bulbs are quite content to grow on all summer, and tolerate our rather unpredictable weather conditions.

Cyclamen species are another group that benefit from a continuous growing season at the seedling stage, and will sometimes flower in the second year if they can be kept growing through their first summer. The same procedure as before is used, move them to a cool shady place before the hot weather arrives, and feed them every two weeks with the tomato fertilised as described above.

Bulbs must not be picked out at the seedling stage but left in the seed-pot for at least two years and fed as for the others, When it comes to potting on, the whole pot-full is put into a bigger pot and not divided out. Only after three years are they sorted out and potted individually if required. This is most important and must not be overlooked. I forgot to mention that the same procedure applies to the Cyclamen species if you want them to flower quickly, as they do not like disturbed in the early stages of growth.

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MICHAEL J CAMPBELL