War Gardens: A Pocket Guide for Home Vegetable Growers

by Montague Free

POISON BAIT FOR CUTWORMS

3 lbs. wheat bran
2 oz. white arsenic or powdered lead arsenate
½ pint cheap molasses

Mix all together and add enough water to make a mash that will stick together. This is very poisonous and extreme care must be exercised in its use.

XII
PLANT DISEASES

Most of our vegetable crops are subject to attack by fungus or bacterial parasites which cause disease. Preventive measures are the most important in combating ills of this nature. These may consist of providing unfavorable soil conditions for the disease, as in the case of cabbage clubroot, or disinfection of the “seed” as practised for the control of scab of potatoes. Other measures are: the application of protective sprays, which kill the spores of disease organisms when they germinate; rotation of crops; planting disease-resistant varieties; and the avoidance of material carrying spores of disease, such as manure containing parts of diseased plants.

Bordeaux mixture is the standard fungicide. The formula which calls for four ounces lump lime, four ounces copper sulphate (bluestone) and three gallons of water is the one most commonly used.

It is made by dissolving four ounces of bluestone in an earthenware or wooden vessel in one and one-half gallons of water. The lime is slaked in another vessel by adding water gradually until it forms a mixture of a milky consistency. Add more water to make one and one-half gallons and strain through cheese-cloth. After it has been strained it should be thoroughly mixed with the copper-sulphate solution and used immediately. Bordeaux mixture made in this way will not keep, but should be applied the same day. Stock solutions of copper sulphate and lime will keep indefinitely if they are not mixed together.

Liver of sulphur (potassium sulphide) is valuable for spraying plants affected with mildew. Use one ounce dissolved in three gallons of water. This solution discolors paint.

The following are some of the common diseases affecting vegetable crops:

Beans are attacked by anthracnose. It causes dark-colored, sunken spots to appear on the leaves, stems, and pods. It frequently penetrates to the seeds. Infected seeds should never be planted. It pays to look over all beans that are to be used for seed and destroy all that are discolored. Never work among the bean-plants when they are wet, as the disease, if it is present, is easily spread by this means.

Beets are subject to a leaf-spot. This causes small, round, dead spots to appear on the leaves. Bordeaux mixture applied as soon as the spots appear and at intervals of one or two weeks will check this disease.

Cabbage.—Clubroot is a disease which causes the roots of cabbage, cauliflower, kohlrabi, and allied plants to become swollen and deformed, and prevents them from functioning properly. If it is not noticed at transplanting-time the first indication of its presence is the sudden wilting of the plants. All affected plants should be destroyed. The seedbed and that part of the garden where the cabbages are to be planted should be limed two or three months before planting. Use between fifty and sixty pounds of air-slaked lime on a plot twenty by twenty feet, and thoroughly mix it with the soil.

Corn.—Corn smut usually appears as swellings, covered with a silvery membrane, on the tassels or ears. These break open later and disclose the masses of dark-colored spores. The swellings should be cut off and destroyed before they burst.

Cucumber.—Anthracnose, angular leafspot, and downy mildew are diseases attacking the leaves of cucumbers which can be controlled to some extent by frequent spraying with Bordeaux mixture. This should be applied as soon as the diseases are noticed and repeated at intervals of one or two weeks.

Peas are affected by a mildew which shows itself on the leaves and pods as a whitish mold. The plants should be dusted with powdered sulphur, or sprayed with potassium-sulphide solution to which resin fish-oil soap has been added to make it stick to the leaves.

Potato.—Two important diseases affecting potatoes are scab and late blight. The former is a disease which lives in the soil and is also carried over on infected potatoes. It shows itself as scabby spots on the tubers. Seed potatoes can be disinfected by soaking them, before they are cut, for two hours in a solution of one part Formalin to two hundred and forty parts water. This treatment will not prevent scab if the soil is already infected. An alkaline soil favors the growth of this disease.

Late blight appears late in the season and causes the leaves to blacken, become watery, and decay, often accompanied with an offensive odor. The disease also penetrates the tubers and renders them unfit for storage purposes. Spraying with Bordeaux mixture is practised as a preventive measure. It should be applied when the plants are six inches high, and repeated at intervals of about ten days until the crop is mature. Crops can be obtained without spraying, but Bordeaux mixture may be considered as a form of insurance. Lead arsenate may be added to the Bordeaux mixture if potato-beetles are present.

Tomato.—Tomato leaf-spot is a disease which causes dark-brown spots to appear on the leaves. The areas attacked shrivel and die. Spray with Bordeaux mixture.

It is just as important to apply remedial or preventive measures early in the case of diseases as it is in controlling insect pests. Fine mist-like sprays should be used as recommended for applying stomach poisons, and for the same reason.

XIII
THE CULTURE OF VEGETABLES IN DETAIL

This chapter is devoted to hints on the cultivation of the more important vegetables, together with some mention of varieties suited for “war-garden” planting.

Artichoke, Jerusalem.—This has about the same food value as the potato, but, unfortunately, it is a rather tasteless product. Proper cooking, with the addition of sauces and condiments, will make it palatable. It is a tall, coarse-growing plant belonging to the sunflower family. If you have an out-of-the-way spot in your garden where nothing else will grow, try a few artichokes. It needs sunshine, but is not particular as to soil. It should be planted in the spring on ground that has had a dressing of barn-yard manure spaded in. Plant the tubers a foot apart in rows two feet apart. The plant is a perennial, and likely to become a troublesome weed unless restricted to one corner of the garden.

Beans.—This group comprises some of the most important of garden vegetables.

The various types of beans differ greatly in their requirements, and there is scarcely any kind of soil or climate that will support vegetation, where beans of one kind or another cannot be grown.

Most of the beans are very susceptible to cold and must not be planted until the soil has warmed up and all danger of frost is past. There is one kind, however, belonging to a different genus than the common beans, which is not harmed by frost and which requires a long, cool season to develop properly. This is the broad, or Windsor, bean. A rich clay loam is best suited to this plant, and the seeds must be planted just as soon as the ground is in condition to be worked on in the spring. Plant them in rows two feet apart, and three inches apart in the rows.

The ordinary garden beans can be divided into two groups—the pole beans, which can be subdivided into those of the string and Lima types; and the bush beans, comprising string-beans, green and wax podded, green-shell beans, dry-shell beans, and Limas.

The pole beans, especially the Limas, are very susceptible to cold and cannot be planted outdoors in the vicinity of New York until toward the end of May, and not until June if it happens to be a cool season. They require a light, fertile soil for their best development. Seeds can be planted in hills three feet apart each way, placing three or four seeds in each hill. Poles must be provided for them to climb on and these should be in place before the seeds are planted. They can also be planted and trained on a trellis, as described in Chapter X.

Bush beans of the string type are less affected by cold than the preceding, but are not very hardy in this respect. They may be planted as soon as danger of frost is past if the ground is not too cold and wet. The distance between the rows should be about eighteen inches, the plants standing from three to four inches apart in the rows. Bush beans will grow in a variety of soils ranging from those of a sandy nature to clay loams, but they grow best in sandy loam. Shell beans of the Improved Navy type (pea-beans) are especially adapted for planting in sandy soils.

Bush Lima beans require the same kind of soil as the pole beans, and should be planted at the same time. Make the rows two feet apart, with the plants from six to nine inches apart in the row.

The following are good varieties. Of the dwarf, wax-podded kinds Rust-proof Golden Wax and Burpee’s Kidney are desirable.

Bountiful, a flat-podded type, and Valentine, a round-podded kind, are good examples of dwarf, green snap-beans.

In the pole beans we have Golden Carmine and Golden Cluster, both wax-pods, and Kentucky Wonder, an excellent, green snap-bean and also suitable for providing dry-shell beans.

Of beans that are grown for their seeds the following may be noted: Dwarf Horticultural (can also be used as a snap-bean), Improved Navy, and White Marrow.

The Limas are represented by two forms, the dwarf and the climbing kinds. Good dwarf Limas are Burpee’s Improved, and Fordhook. For planting in the Northern states, Leviathan, which is a quick-maturing variety, is very suitable. This and King of the Garden, a very productive kind, are pole, or climbing, Limas.

Beets are one of the hardy vegetables which can be planted as soon as the ground has been prepared in the spring. There are two distinct kinds of beets—those which have a globular or flat root, and those with a long, tapering root. The latter are of slower growth than the round kinds, and are very suitable for winter storage, but their cultivation should not be attempted unless the soil is deep and of a sandy nature. The globe beets are the best for the home gardener. For the first planting a quick-maturing kind, such as Crosby’s Egyptian, should be chosen. For later plantings Detroit Dark Red is suitable, and this is a good variety to plant toward the end of June or early July to form roots suitable for winter storage. Beets can be planted in rows from twelve to eighteen inches apart. After the seedlings have reached a height of two or three inches they should be thinned out to stand four inches apart in the row. If desired, these thinnings may be taken up carefully, so as not to break the roots, and transplanted in another part of the garden. Another plan is to defer thinning until the plants are from four to six inches in height, and then use the thinnings as “greens.” Beets will grow in almost any soil, but the best crops are produced on sandy loams.

Cabbage may be grown as an early crop, to mature around June or July, or as a late crop, to mature in the fall.

The early crop is usually produced from seeds sown in a greenhouse or hotbed in February or early March, the young plants being set out in April. They require plenty of room for development and should be planted so as to stand from eighteen inches to two feet apart in the rows, the rows being two and one-half to three feet apart. Early Jersey Wakefield is the variety commonly grown for an early crop.

Seeds for the late crop can be sown in May. If sown outdoors, a plot of rich, sandy soil (a square yard will produce an ample supply of seedlings for most home gardens) should be chosen. If the plot has been limed a short time previous it is an advantage, as an alkaline soil lessens the liability to club root, a disease which prevents proper development of the cabbage. The resultant seedlings should be set out in July. As late cabbages are stronger growers and form larger heads than the early kinds, they should be given more room—three feet between the rows and two feet apart in the rows. A standard variety for late planting is Flat Dutch.

Cabbages will succeed in a variety of soils, but to get best results heavy applications of decayed stable manure should be incorporated with the soil before planting. Surface dressings of nitrate of soda are also beneficial.

Carrot.—This crop can be planted any time after the ground is in condition in the spring up to July, which is a suitable time to sow seeds for the crop designed for winter storage. The quick-maturing kinds, such as Early Scarlet Horn, should be sown first, choosing the warmest position in the garden. These will be ready for use in a short time, when they may be harvested and the ground used for another crop. For later crops Danver’s Half-long may be used. Carrot seed should be sown in rows a foot or fifteen inches apart and one-half inch deep. The early varieties should be thinned to stand about two inches apart, while the main crop needs about four inches between each plant. Some people defer the thinning of their carrots until they are of sufficient size for the table. “Baby” carrots are one of the most delicious of vegetables when they are properly cooked, far preferable to the roots that have been allowed to mature. While this plan has great advantages, the carrots left behind do not attain so great a size as would be the case if thinning had been attended to earlier.

A deep, well-cultivated soil is the best for this crop. In heavy soils that have not been deeply worked, the short-rooted kinds, such as Ox-heart, should be planted.

Cauliflower.—The cultivation of cauliflower is substantially the same as that of cabbage. It is a cool-weather crop, and not much success is likely to be obtained if attempts are made to mature it during hot weather. For this reason it is either planted early, or as late as possible consistent with the prospects of maturing the crop. It requires a light, rich soil. When the heads begin to form, it is advisable to bend the outside leaves over and fasten them in such a way that the head is shaded from the sun. Cauliflower is emphatically not a crop for the novice.

Celery.—There are two distinct kinds of celery—the so-called “self-blanching” varieties, and the green-leaf kinds. The former are the earliest to mature, but are not to be compared for flavor and tenderness with the latter.

Seed of the early kinds, of which White Plume is an example, is sown in February in a greenhouse or hotbed. The young plants should be transplanted once or twice, either in shallow boxes filled with earth or in the open ground, before the plants are set out where they are to mature, in May or June. Celery naturally forms a long “tap root” with few fibers. The object of the successive transplantings is to check this “tap root” and promote the formation of a mass of fibrous feeding-roots. The plants are placed in single or double rows thirty inches or three feet apart, and from four to six inches apart in the rows. When they attain sufficient size they are blanched by placing boards, a foot wide and as long as can conveniently be handled, on either side of the row. Other methods of blanching are by slipping a drain-pipe over each plant or by wrapping around them a collar made of stout paper and tying it in place with twine.

Seed of late celery is sown about the same time as the early kinds, or a few weeks later, and the procedure is the same up until planting-time, which is early in July. Late celery is of stronger growth than the early varieties and needs more room for its development. The plants should be set in rows three and a half to four feet apart, and six inches apart in the rows. In some sections it is customary to dig a trench six inches or more deep and plant the celery in this. By this means watering is facilitated, and it is easier to blanch the celery later on. This method is not advisable when the good soil is shallow, as it results in the roots being placed in the infertile subsoil. Blanching of late celery is usually effected by mounding the stalks with earth dug from between the rows. Two persons can most advantageously perform this operation, one holding the stalks together so that the soil does not fall into the heart, the other mounding up the soil and patting it into position with the back of a spade.

It is not worth while to attempt to grow celery unless a rich, moist soil is available.

Good varieties of “self-blanching” celery are White Plume and Golden Self-blanching. Among the best of the “green-leaf” kinds are Giant Pascal and Winter Queen. The latter variety has a splendid flavor and keeps well into the winter.

Chard.—One of the easiest to grow and most productive of the pot herbs is Swiss chard, “silver beet” or “leaf beet” as it is sometimes called. The seeds should be sown in rows about eighteen inches apart. When the plants are about four inches high they can be thinned so as to stand six inches apart and the thinnings used as “greens.” Later on alternate plants should be taken out, so that finally each plant is a foot away from the next. After this stage is arrived at the chard should be picked by pulling off the outside leaves.

There are two varieties listed in the catalogues. One, Lucullus, has crumpled leaves and very broad, thick, white midribs. This is the variety that should be grown when it is desired to cook and serve the midribs separately, after the fashion of asparagus.

Swiss chard is a form of beet which does not produce edible roots. Nitrate of soda, as recommended for kohlrabi, is an excellent fertilizer for this crop.

Corn, the most delectable of all vegetables, should receive the attention of all home gardeners who have sufficient room and a fairly rich soil. This is a vegetable the flavor of which rapidly deteriorates after the ears have been removed from the plant; therefore the store article can never be as good as the home-grown kind.

The hill and drill methods of planting each have their vehement advocates. Good crops can be obtained either way, but the drill method is probably best for the small garden. The seeds are planted in drills two inches deep, dropping two or three seeds at every foot. When they germinate, all but the strongest plant should be pulled up from each group. The rows can be two and a half feet apart for the small-growing kinds like Golden Bantam, and three feet for the larger varieties such as Stowell’s Evergreen.

When the hill system of cultivation is adopted, five or six seeds are planted in spaces two and a half or three feet apart each way. The young plants are thinned out to stand three or four to a hill.

Corn needs to be frequently hoed to get best results.

Several methods may be adopted in order to insure a succession of corn for the table. A quick-maturing variety may be planted at intervals of three weeks up to the middle of July, or, early, midseason, and late varieties may be planted at the same time in May or June.

The removal of the side shoots which appear in the axils of the leaves at the base of the plant should be attended to. This is known as “suckering.” It causes the vigor of the plant to be concentrated in the production of ears instead of being frittered away on side shoots or “suckers” which will never amount to anything.

Corn should not be planted until the soil has warmed up and danger of frost is past. It is permissible, however, to take a chance with a few rows by sowing early, in the hope that they will come through all right—say about the end of April or beginning of May in those sections which possess a climate similar to that of New York.

Cucumbers are a crop that requires a fair amount of room for proper development. They should be planted in hills five feet apart each way, with four or five plants in each hill; or in rows five feet apart, with the plants standing about one foot apart in the rows. The seeds should not be planted outdoors until all danger of frost is past. An early crop can be obtained by raising the plants in a greenhouse by sowing the seeds early in berry-boxes and transplanting outdoors when the weather is warm enough. It is a good plan, when planting outdoors, to sow the seeds rather thickly, about ten seeds to a hill, so as to get a good stand and lessen the risk of losing the plants by insect attacks.

The soil most suitable for cucumbers is a sandy loam that has been well enriched with decayed stable manure. They will succeed admirably on newly broken sod land.

The best cucumbers for outdoor planting are those belonging to the “white spine” type, of which Davis Perfect is a good example. For supplying small cucumbers for pickling, Fordhook Pickling is one of the best varieties to grow.

Egg-plant is a tropical plant which will not mature its fruits in the Northern states unless its season of growth is lengthened by starting the plants in a greenhouse or hotbed. It is very susceptible to cold and it is scarcely safe to set the young plants outdoors until June in the latitude of New York. Egg-plant requires a sunny position and a warm, light, fertile soil. It can be planted in rows two and a half to three feet apart, two feet being allowed between the plants in the rows. Black Beauty is a standard variety. Early Long Purple is a quick-maturing kind.

Kale.—The cultivation of kale is practically that of late cabbage. It is an extremely hardy vegetable and will stand a great deal of frost.

Kohlrabi is another member of the cabbage group. It is desirable to mature it quickly, as slow-grown plants are woody and inedible. This quick growth is effected by planting in rich soil and by giving top-dressings of nitrate of soda at the rate of one ounce to ten feet of row. The swollen stems should be eaten when they are about two inches in diameter. Early Vienna, either white or purple top, is a good variety. The seeds may be sown in the spring just as soon as the ground can be worked, in rows from fifteen to eighteen inches apart. When the young plants are large enough they are thinned to stand six inches apart in the rows; if so desired, the thinnings may be used as “greens.”

Lettuce, the most important salad crop, requires a rich, sandy soil. It is seldom that it will “head” properly in city backyards, because of unsuitable soil and other adverse conditions. Lettuce is a cool-weather crop, and during the hot days of summer the greatest difficulty is experienced in growing it. There are several different types. The loose-leaf kinds, those that do not form a head, are the easiest to grow. The other forms are the Romaine, or Cos, which makes a columnar head, and the ordinary kind, or cabbage lettuce.

The seeds should be planted shallowly in rows a foot or eighteen inches apart, and afterward the young plants must be thinned to stand ten or twelve inches apart in the row. A row twenty feet long is enough to plant at one sowing. Other plantings should be made at intervals of two or three weeks, so as to provide a succession. During hot weather the plants are benefited by being shaded with cheese-cloth screens. These can be conveniently made by tacking cheese-cloth on lath frames of suitable size, which should be supported on stakes driven into the ground.

Quick growth is essential to obtain crisp, well-flavored lettuce. This can partially be brought about by the use of nitrate of soda, as recommended for kohlrabi. Avoid getting any of the nitrate on the leaves of the plants, as it will burn them.

Good varieties of lettuce are May King and Hanson, belonging to the cabbage-head type; Grand Rapids, a loose-leaf variety; and Paris White Cos.

In cities sparrows are frequently troublesome to growers of lettuce, as they are fond of picking off the leaves of the young plants. Protection is effected by stretching several strands of strong thread a few inches above the rows. The sparrows become very suspicious of an arrangement of this kind, and it is usually efficacious in keeping them away from the plants.

Muskmelon.—The cultivation of this crop is very much like that of cucumber. Muskmelons are rather more susceptible to cold than the latter, and in consequence the soil and air must be warm before they are planted. The soil must be well drained or they will not succeed. When they have to be planted on land that is cold and poorly drained it is a good plan to plant them on ridges or mounds, about two feet across, raised six inches or so above the general level. This assists the soil in warming up and insures better drainage. A layer of decayed manure about three inches thick, buried in the hills where the plants are to grow, greatly helps this crop and others of a similar nature, such as cucumbers, squash, and pumpkin. Frequent cultivation of the surface soil is necessary to stimulate growth, keep down weeds, and conserve moisture, when the plants are young. Good varieties of muskmelon are Emerald Gem, a small or salmon-fleshed form, and Rocky Ford and Hackensack, which are of medium size with green flesh.

Okra.—The cultivation of okra is very similar to that of corn, although otherwise they have nothing else in common. It succeeds best in a sandy, well-fertilized loam.

Onion.—There are two ways of producing a crop of onions—from “sets” and from seed. “Sets” are small onions produced by sowing seed very thickly in rather poor soil and allowing the plants to mature as they stand. This results in a crop of small bulbs which are stored over the winter and sold the following spring as onion “sets.” There are two methods of raising onions from seed. The plants may be obtained by sowing the seed in a greenhouse in February, transplanting the seedlings to the open ground in April. The procedure most commonly followed, however, is to plant the seeds in rows a foot apart, in the position where they are to mature, as early as possible in the spring. When the young plants appear they are thinned to four inches apart. If the seedlings are left until they are the thickness of a lead-pencil they may be pulled and used as a salad in the form of bunch onions.

A crop can be produced earlier by the use of “sets.” These are planted in furrows two inches deep, spacing them two inches apart. The soil is then drawn over them and firmed. After some growth has been made, alternate plants may be pulled out and used as salad, leaving the remainder to mature.

Thorough preparation of the soil is essential to achieve success in growing onions. It should be dug up as deeply as possible, thoroughly pulverized, and afterward compacted by rolling with a garden roller or by tramping. Onions succeed best on soil which is fairly retentive of moisture and rich in nitrogen. Top-dressings of hen or sheep manure, or of nitrate of soda, are beneficial to this crop. Remember what has been said previously with regard to taking care not to apply too much of any of these fertilizers. Weeding is a very important operation in connection with onion-growing, and some of it, when the weeds are close to or in the rows, has to be done by hand. If the weeds are allowed to obtain a headway the crop will suffer greatly in consequence.

In wet seasons, and when planted in rich, retentive soils, the bulbs sometimes fail to mature at the proper time. When they show signs of growing too late in the fall, it is customary to go over the plot and break over the tops. This can be done by dragging a board over the onion-bed, or, if the plot is a small one, it may be done by hand. This process arrests growth and causes the bulbs to mature so that they are suitable for winter storage. Immature bulbs will not keep properly.

Standard varieties of onion are Yellow Danvers and Southport Globe, which can be obtained in red, white, and yellow forms. Prize-taker is a very large, mild onion which succeeds best when started in a greenhouse.

Parsley succeeds best in a clay loam soil that has been well fertilized with stable manure. The seeds are slow to germinate and it is frequently four or five weeks before the young plants show themselves above the ground. Growth may be hastened by soaking the seeds in tepid water for twenty-four hours before sowing them. They should be planted in rows a foot apart and the young plants thinned to stand six inches apart. Champion Moss Curled is a good variety.

Parsnip.—A long season is required for the development of large roots. The seeds should be sown in April in rows from fifteen to eighteen inches apart, afterward thinning the seedlings so that they stand six inches apart. The seeds are slow in germinating and it is a good plan to sow a few seeds of radish in the drill with them. The radishes germinate quickly and serve to break the surface crust and to mark the row so that cultivation may be performed close to the row without disturbing the parsnip seeds. The radishes are mature and can be pulled and used for the table by the time the parsnips have appeared above the ground.

A deep, loamy soil is most suited for the production of parsnips. In a shallow soil the roots are likely to be stunted and misshapen. The following method of producing extra-large and well-shaped roots is sometimes used by exhibitors of vegetables. Holes about two feet deep and three inches in diameter at the top are made in the ground with a crowbar at intervals of about nine inches. These holes are filled with sifted fertile earth, and three or four seeds planted in each. When the seedlings appear, all but the strongest are pulled out. This method is only to be recommended when it is desired to walk off with the prize for the best parsnips at the county fair or the town vegetable show. Hollow Crown is a good variety.

Peas are essentially a cool-weather crop, and they especially resent hot, dry conditions at the root. For this reason the seeds should be planted just as soon as the ground is workable in the spring. The dwarf varieties can be planted in double rows about six inches apart, leaving a space of eighteen inches or two feet between each double row. The tall varieties, which need support of some kind, may be planted in the same way, but a space varying from three to five feet must be allowed between the rows, according to the height of the variety planted. The taller the variety, the greater is the necessity for ample space between the rows.

It is said to be possible to produce a crop of peas in the fall by sowing the seeds in August, but the writer has never seen much success attained with a crop at this season; at any rate, not in the vicinity of New York. For a late crop of peas it is advisable to dig a trench from six to eight inches deep and sow the seeds in this, covering them with two inches of soil, as usual. Water them thoroughly if the weather is dry. As the plants grow the earth should be gradually drawn into the trench until it is filled up to the surrounding level. This system is adopted so that the roots may be well down in the earth and thus protected from the hot rays of the sun. This is also a good method to adopt for late spring plantings of peas.

A fairly fertile, loamy soil, well drained, but of a retentive nature, is most suited to peas.

First of All, thirty inches high, is a good variety of the smooth-seeded type of pea. This type does not possess such a good flavor as the wrinkled-seeded kinds, but the seeds are not likely to rot if planted in cold, wet soil. Nott’s Excelsior is an excellent dwarf variety of the wrinkled-seed type. Of the tall kinds, Alderman, five feet in height, Gradus, thirty inches, and Champion of England, five feet, are to be recommended.

Peppers require very much the same conditions as tomatoes and egg-plant, except that they may be planted somewhat closer together. The rows should be from eighteen inches to two feet apart, with the plants spaced from one to two feet apart in the rows. Bull Nose and Chinese Giant are good examples of the mild, sweet kinds, with Golden Queen to give color variation in the salad made from them. Long Red Cayenne and Red Chili should be chosen if the peppery varieties are desired.

Potato.—The largest crops of potatoes are produced in cool, moist, climates such as are found in Great Britain, parts of Europe, and, in the United States, in Maine and Michigan.

The soils best suited for potatoes are fertile, rather sandy loams which should be fairly retentive of moisture. A soil of this nature which has been heavily fertilized with barn-yard manure the preceding year may be considered ideal for potato culture. The use of barn-yard manure, particularly if it is fresh, is inadvisable if the soil contains a good proportion of humus and is in good physical condition. It is claimed that the practice of using barn-yard manure the current season causes the crop to be more susceptible to attacks of potato scab. Many of the largest growers of potatoes refrain from fertilizing directly with barn-yard manure, but rely instead on the use of commercial fertilizers. These may be applied broadcast over the field in the spring, after the soil has been plowed, and harrowed in. If only a small quantity of fertilizer is available, it is preferable to apply it by spreading it in the furrows, but thoroughly mixing it in the soil before the potatoes are planted. The fertilizer obtainable from most seedsmen under the name of “potato manure” can safely be used in the furrows at the rate of five pounds to a plot of four hundred square feet.

“Seed” potatoes should consist of medium-sized tubers, Northern grown, and free from disease. Although whole potatoes may be planted, the usual practice is to cut them into pieces, each piece containing two or three “eyes,” or buds. When cutting the potatoes for sets make each piece as “chunky” as possible so that there is a good-sized piece of potato for the “eyes” to draw upon for their food supply until they have formed a root system of their own.

There are two methods of planting potatoes—in hills and in furrows or rows. In the hill system of planting, the plants are spaced from two to three feet apart either way, the distance being dependent on the vigor of the variety. When planted in furrows the rows are spaced from two to three feet apart and the sets placed from twelve to eighteen inches apart in the rows. The early varieties may be planted about four inches deep, and the late varieties about six inches.

When the shoots appear above the ground the surface soil should be cultivated to conserve moisture and to keep down weeds. Later in the season when the tubers are being formed it is customary to hill them up with earth so as to cover the tubers and prevent “greening,” and also to assist in keeping the roots cool.

The potato is particularly susceptible to environmental conditions. A variety that may be an excellent cropper in one section may be an utter failure in another. It is thus difficult to recommend any particular variety. The best plan for those who are to attempt the cultivation of potatoes is to make inquiry in the neighborhood with a view to finding the variety that is most successful in that locality.

The following are standard varieties that are widely grown: early varieties—Irish Cobbler, Early Rose, Early Ohio; main-crop varieties—Carman No. 1, Green Mountain, and Rural New-Yorker.

Pumpkins will succeed under practically the same conditions as outlined for cucumber and melon. They are also subject to the same insect pests. This crop is frequently grown in the corn-patch, in hills about eight feet apart each way, planting five or six seeds to a hill.

Radishes are only palatable when they have been grown very quickly. If they are slow in coming to maturity the product is pithy and worthless.

A light, rich soil is most suited to the production of radishes. The seeds should be sown in rows nine inches or a foot apart and the seedlings thinned to about two inches. It does not pay to transplant radishes. Five or six feet of row is sufficient to plant at one time, securing a succession by planting other batches at intervals of about ten days. Radishes are usually not in great demand during the summer months, as the home grower has been surfeited by his spring crop. Those who are so fond of radishes that they want them throughout the whole season should plant White Strasburg or Icicle to mature during the hot weather, and Cardinal Globe, Round Red Forcing, or French Breakfast for an early crop.

Winter radishes, which form very large roots and may be stored by the same methods adopted for beets and carrots, are usually sown about the end of July or beginning of August. They need more space in which to mature—about eighteen inches between the rows and six inches in the rows.

Rutabaga.—See Turnip.

Salsify or Vegetable Oyster is a vegetable that is coming into more general use. Seeds are sown early in the spring on deeply broken ground in rows fifteen inches apart, and the plants thinned to three inches. The roots are dug in the fall and stored like beets, or they may be left in the ground and dug when required for use, if the weather permits.

Spinach is a cool-weather crop that requires a light soil heavily manured with decayed stable manure for best results. The seeds should be planted in very early spring or in September, in rows fifteen inches apart, and the plants thinned to stand four inches apart. Nitrate of soda as recommended for kohlrabi is good for this crop.

Spinach (New Zealand).—Although called spinach, this is an entirely different plant and belongs to another family. It luxuriates during hot weather and will supply the table plentifully with “greens” throughout the summer. Seeds should be planted during April or May in rows two feet apart, the plants later being thinned to one foot. When the plants attain a foot in height picking may begin, using the tender shoot-tips, or leaves, as required. The thinnings, of course, are also available for cooking.

Squash.—Cultivate the same as cucumber. The bush varieties should be planted four feet apart each way, and the vining kinds from six to eight feet.

There are several different types of squash. The summer kinds are represented by the Pattypan and Crookneck types, and the winter varieties by the Hubbard.

They are subject to much the same insect pests and diseases as the cucumber and muskmelon.

Sweet Potatoes are not very well adapted for Northern gardens, although they are grown to a considerable extent in parts of New Jersey.

They succeed best in a rich, sandy soil. The “sets” are usually planted on slightly raised, broad ridges about four feet apart. They are spaced from twelve to eighteen inches apart along the ridges.

The production of “sets” is usually effected by placing small potatoes in a hotbed and covering them with sand. This causes them to sprout, and when the shoots are six or eight inches in length they are pulled off with roots attached and planted as described.

Yellow Jersey is a good variety for Northern planting.

Swiss Chard.—See under Chard.

Tomato.—This plant adapts itself to a great variety of soils, and will succeed almost anywhere if it receives warmth and sunshine.

It is seldom worth while for any one without greenhouse facilities, unless he wishes to have the experience, to raise tomatoes from seed. Young plants can be obtained at a low cost at planting-time from seedsmen who have every convenience for raising them cheaply.

The distance apart between the plants when they are set out in the garden depends on the method of training adopted. The truck farmers and market gardeners seldom go to the trouble of staking their plants. They are simply set out in the field three or four feet apart each way and allowed to grow naturally. This results in the spoiling of some of the fruit through coming in contact with the soil.

The home gardener can usually afford the time and trouble required to stake his tomatoes, and receives his reward in the shape of more fruit of better quality.

One method of training is to set out the plants a foot apart in rows three feet apart. If this scheme is adopted each plant must be supplied with a stout stake to which it is tied, and the plant must be restricted to a single stem. This last is effected by pinching out the side shoots with thumb and finger as soon as they are formed. Avoid taking off the flowering shoots or you will have no fruit.

Another method is to set the plants three feet by two feet, and support them as described in Chapter X. In this case it is advisable to prune out the thin, spindly shoots which frequently congregate in the centers of the plants. This causes the vigor of the plant to be concentrated in the strong, fruiting shoots, admits light and air, resulting in better ripened tomatoes.

They can also be trained on the south side of the house, supporting them with tape or cloth passed around the shoots and fastened to the wall with tacks.

Favorite tomatoes are Chalk’s Early Jewel for an early crop, Stone and Ponderosa for main crop. In small gardens Dwarf Stone can be used to advantage.

Turnip is a hardy crop well suited for early spring or late fall cultivation. For the early crop such varieties as Snowball or Early White Milan should be planted. The seed may be sown as soon as the ground is prepared in the spring, in rows a foot apart. When they are large enough the young plants must be thinned out to stand about four inches apart.

Yellow Globe, Golden Ball, or the white strap-leaf kinds may be sown for fall use. They are cultivated in the same way as the preceding except that the seeds are sown in July or August.

Rutabaga turnips grow much larger than the preceding, require more room, and a longer period for development. They can be sown in May or June in rows two feet apart, and the young plants thinned out to stand about ten inches apart in the rows. Treated in this way, they will form large roots suitable for winter storage.

Turnips succeed best in a loamy soil in which there has been incorporated a liberal supply of well-decayed stable manure.

Watermelon.—These plants succeed under much the same conditions, and need the same treatment as muskmelon. They are rampant growers and the hills should be spaced about eight feet apart each way. They are, therefore, not adapted for cultivation in very small gardens.

The striped cucumber-beetle is also partial to watermelon.

For planting in Northern gardens, quick-maturing varieties such as Cole’s Early and Fordhook should be planted.

XIV
HARVESTING AND STORING

The flavor and tenderness of many vegetables depend in a large measure on their being harvested at the proper time. The picking of string-beans should be early, constant, and methodical, partly because old beans are stringy and unpalatable and partly because, if picking is neglected and the plants allowed to form seed, production ceases. Peas should always be picked just as soon as the pods are well filled, before the seeds commence to harden. Their flavor deteriorates if they are picked more than an hour or two before they are needed for the table. The same remarks apply to sweet corn. There is an old saying that “the pot should be boiling before the ears are picked from the plant.”

Great care should be taken in harvesting beets. If the roots are bruised or broken, or if the leaves are cut off too close to the root, the color of the beets, one of their greatest attractions, will be lost in cooking. The crispness of salad plants—celery, lettuce, radish, and onion—is enhanced if they are gathered early in the morning and stood in water in a shady, cool place until they are required for use. Such crops as Brussells sprouts, kale, celery, and parsnips are considered to be improved in flavor after they have been slightly frozen. The fruits of tomato, watermelon, and muskmelon should be allowed to ripen on the plants. Muskmelons are ripe when the fruit parts readily from the stem on being lifted in the hand.

Proper harvesting is a prime necessity if vegetables are to be successfully stored for winter use. Bruised, broken or diseased vegetables should always be rejected, as decay is almost certain to take place when they are stored, and this is likely to spread to the sound vegetables.

A cellar with an earthen floor, well ventilated and frost-proof, in which a temperature of from 40° to 45° Fahr. can be maintained, forms a splendid storage-place for potatoes, the majority of the root crops, and some of the leaf vegetables. If there is a furnace in the cellar which raises the temperature too much, the coolness required may be obtained by partitioning off part of the cellar, preferably in a corner containing a window, so that ventilation may be secured.

Quite a number of vegetables can be successfully stored in the open by burying them in pits or trenches and covering with straw, salt hay, and earth. Some of the disadvantages of this method are the inaccessibility of the vegetables when the weather is severe, and the difficulty of looking them over occasionally so that diseased and decayed specimens may be removed. When storing vegetables in this way it is important that the whole of the covering should not be put on at one time, as this endangers the whole pile of vegetables through the possibility of heating.