The Vegetable Garden: What, When, and How to Plant

by Anonymous

Growing Without Irrigation.—For a home supply of celery it is often possible to select a rather moist but well-drained piece of land whereon it may be grown without artificial watering. In this case the plants should be set while the atmosphere is filled with moisture, preferably between gentle showers, and the moisture afterwards retained in the soil by frequent shallow cultivation or by the application of a mulch around the plants. This method can not be followed in climates where irrigation is necessary for the production of crops, but is applicable in regions that have an ordinary rainfall during the growing season.

Planting.—For domestic use, where plenty of land is available, it will be found most economical to plant in single or double rows 4, 5 or 6 feet apart, with the plants 5 or 6 inches apart in the row. If the space is limited, solid beds about 5 feet wide will be found suitable, with the plants set 7 or 8 inches apart each way. By planting in rows the crop may be worked with a horse cultivator or a wheel hoe and the banking more easily done, and thus the cost of production is lessened. With the solid-bed system the work must all be done by hand. If possible, the planting should be done when the soil is rather moist and the atmospheric conditions suitable to the subsistence of the plants until the roots can again furnish sufficient moisture to supply them. The bed should be thoroughly watered a few hours before the plants are removed, and a knife or trowel should be run between the plants so that they may be lifted with a clump of earth and with most of their roots attached.

Mulching.—In muck soils it will not be found necessary to mulch the ground around the plants after setting, but some kind of a covering is desirable on sandy and clay soils. As soon as the plants are in position and before any water is applied, cover the ground for a distance of 8 or 10 inches on either side with any finely divided material that will shade the top of the soil and prevent a crust being formed after watering; half-rotted manure is preferable for this, as it aids the growth by its fertilizing qualities. Good celery can be grown on clay upland with but one watering—at the time of planting—provided that plenty of mulch is applied as soon as the plants are set. The roots of celery, after it is once transplanted, run close to the surface, and the mulch will protect them from the heat of the sun. Among materials that may be used for a mulch may be mentioned pine needles, leaves of any kind, straw, cornstalks run through the cutter, clippings from the lawn, etc., none of which, however, are as good as barnyard manure. Have the material to be used as a mulch near at hand, and as the plants are set cover the soil around them to a depth of 2 inches, bringing the mulching material up close to the plant, but being careful to allow none to get into the heart. Apply the mulch before watering, if possible.

Where celery is planted in single rows and mulched it will only be necessary to maintain shallow cultivation between the rows, not allowing the cultivator teeth to come nearer the plants than the edge of the mulch. Where no mulch is used the cultivation may be carried a little closer to the plants, but should be very shallow, and at no time should deep cultivation be practiced, as the roots are to be found very near the surface of the soil. If a mulch is used no hand cultivation will be required, either along the side or between the plants in the row, except to pull any weeds that may spring up. Where no mulch is used it will be necessary lightly to stir the surface with a wheel hoe or iron rake, to prevent a crust being formed after each rain or watering. Keep the surface of the soil smooth and in no case allow lumps of earth to remain near the plants.

Blanching.—In its original wild state the stems of celery are tough, full of woody strands, of a rank flavor, and green in color, being similar to the outside stems or trimmings of our present varieties. The object of blanching is to secure leafstalks free from woody strands, crisp and tender, and without the rank flavor found in those that are green. Of the cultivated plant there are two classes of varieties, the large-growing, or giant, and the dwarf sorts. These are again divided into those which must be blanched by excluding all the light and those which are in a measure self-blanching. Of the former the Giant Pascal variety is a type, and of the latter the Golden Self-Blanching variety is a good illustration.

Blanching is accomplished by the same general method that is employed for destroying the coloring matter in any plant tissue, that is, by excluding the light and allowing the growth to proceed in the dark. The particular method to be adopted must be determined largely by the time when the crop is to be used. If for early use or marketing, the blanching must be completed where the plants are grown; but if the celery be for winter use the blanching may take place after the crop has been removed from the field and placed in storage. In fact, it is best to blanch as little as possible before storing when the product is to be kept until late, as the keeping qualities are better while it is unblanched. When planting for early use it is necessary to choose one of the self-blanching varieties, such as may be conveniently blanched by the use of boards or other similar means.

For early blanching on a small scale, such as would be employed on the farm or in the garden of the amateur horticulturist, there are several methods. One of the most common is by means of boards placed on edge along each side of the row.

After the boards are in position it is a good plan to run a celery hiller between the rows and to throw a little soil against the lower edges of the boards to close any openings that may result from the uneven surface of the soil.

Two or three weeks' time will be required to complete the blanching of the early varieties, and the boards must be kept in position until the crop is removed from the ground, after which they may be used again two or three times during the season. If the celery is allowed to remain in the boards too long after it has reached a marketable stage, it loses in weight and flavor and is liable to be injured or even destroyed by the attacks of blight. This is especially true during the earlier part of the season, when the weather is warm. At the end of the season the boards should be piled flat, with strips inserted at every fourth or fifth course, and the whole pile roofed over to shed off rain; treated in this manner they will last from ten to twelve years.

Perhaps the most satisfactory way of blanching early celery on a small scale is by means of ordinary farm drain tiles of about 4 inches inside diameter, placed over the plants after they have become almost fully grown. To facilitate the work of placing the tiles over the plants, some of the outside leaves should be pulled away and the main part of the plant loosely tied together by means of a soft string, or, better, with what is known as paper twine, being a string made by twisting a strip of soft paper. This string will lose its strength as soon as it becomes wet, and will offer no resistance to the further growth of the plant. If the common, unglazed tiles are used the evaporation from their surface has a tendency to keep the plant cool during the heat of the day, and a very crisp and tender product is the result. This method of blanching is desirable also on account of its cleanliness, as celery treated in this way will need very little washing before marketing.