STERILISING SOILS.

Taranaki Daily News, 1 November 1930, Page 12

STERILISING SOILS.

Although it may be too large a job to sterilise all the soil in the garden it is quite possible to sterilise sufficient to fill a few seed pans or pots for sowing choice seeds. If the seed is sterilised one is sure that whatever seedlings appear are from the seed that was sown, a great convenience when dealing with unknown plants. There are several methods of sterilising soil, but the best is raising the soil to boiling heat by means of hot water or steam. This can be done by placing a bucket of soil in a half-filled copper of water, lighting the fire and leaving the soil for an hour or so until it is heated right through to the same degree of heat as the boiling water. Another method is to bake the soil in an old tin on the kitchen fire or oven; if, however, anybody is at home beside yourself it may be best to light a fire outside and bake the soil over that, as cooking soil, including worms, is not as savoury as a joint of meat. The first method is much the best, as by this method the humus' in the soil is not destroyed. When only a very small quantity is required, it can be done by filling the flower-pot ready for sowing, and then giving a good soaking with boiling water, letting the soil drain and cool before sowing the seed. When sowing fern spores sterilised soil is essential, otherwise moss grows and chokes out the fern spores. After sowing seeds in sterilised soil, the seed pans should never be watered overhead, but water should be given by soaking the pot, as most water contains some vegetable growth, which will entirely undo the benefit of sterilisation.