A-B-C of Vegetable Gardening

by Eben E. Rexford

Squashes and pumpkins will not keep well if stored in very warm places. A room that is just a little above the frost-point is the best place for them. It will be found far superior to a cellar, as the latter is generally more or less damp, and dampness is one of the worst enemies of these vegetables. A cool, dry atmosphere is what they need, and if it can be given them they can be kept in fine condition throughout the entire winter. Care should be taken, in gathering them, to not break their stems. If this is done they frequently decay at the place where stem and vegetable unite, and this condition spreads rapidly to all portions of them.

The question is frequently asked:

Would you advise plowing or spading the garden in fall? If it could have but one season's attention, I would advise giving it in spring. But if the owner of a garden has ample time to devote to it, I would advise plowing or spading in both seasons. Turning up the soil in fall exposes to the elements that portion of it which is most likely to contain worms and insects which have burrowed away for the winter, and it is desirable to make way with as many of these as possible. Stirring the soil in spring will do them very little harm, as the weather will be in their favor. Fall stirring of the soil is also conducive to a greater degree of mellowness than is likely to result from one operation, and that in spring, as the clods of earth that are thrown up disintegrate under the influence of frost and will be in a condition to pulverize easily when spring comes.

The average gardener doesn't seem to associate the growing of vegetables with an idea of beauty, but he will find, if he looks into the matter, that the vegetable-garden can be made really ornamental. A row of carrots with its feathery green foliage is quite as attractive as many of our decorative plants; and beets, with crimson foliage, are really tropical in their rich coloring. Parsley and lettuce make excellent and ornamental edgings for beds containing other vegetables. Tomatoes, trained to upright trellises, are quite as showy as many kinds of flowers, when their fruit begins to ripen. Peppers work in charmingly with the colorscheme of the vegetable-garden. A little study of garden possibilities will soon convince one that it is an easy matter to make the vegetable-garden as attractive, so far as color is concerned, as the flower-garden is. And while we are at work at gardening, why not make it as attractive as possible? The pleasing appearance of it will lend additional qualities to the fine flavor of its vegetables if we believe that beauty and practicality ought to work in harmony with each other.

Sage, summer savory, and other garden-grown plants used for seasoning or medicinal purposes should be gathered when in their prime. If one waits until late in the season before cutting them, much of their virtue will have been expended in the ripening process which all plants undergo after they complete their growth. Cut them close to the ground, and tie them in loose bunches, and hang them in a shady place until their moisture has evaporated. Then put them in paper bags and hang away in a store-room or closet for the winter. Plants treated in this way will retain nearly all their original flavor, and be found far superior to the kinds you buy at the store.

Cucumbers that have grown to full size should be gathered if not wanted for use, as to allow them to remain on the vines after reaching maturity, and while ripening, materially affects the productiveness of the plants.

Endive is the basis of one of our best and most wholesome fall and winter salads. When nearly full-grown it must be bleached, like celery. Gather the leaves together and tie them in such a manner as to exclude the light. Do this when they are perfectly dry. If wet or damp they are likely to rot.

Some gardeners use what is called onion "sets" instead of seed. These "sets" are the result of sowing seed very thickly in spring the season before they are wanted for planting. As soon as their tops die off in summer—as they will if seed was sown thickly enough—store in a dry and airy place, and the following spring replant. By this method large onions are obtained very early in the season. Most market-gardeners depend on "sets" instead of seed.

Mention has been made of a few of our pot and medicinal plants. Here is a larger list for those who are interested in plants of this kind: balm, sweet basil, caraway, catnip, camomile, coriander, dill, pennyroyal, peppermint, saffron, tansy, and wormwood. Our grandmothers had unlimited faith in the medicinal qualities of some of these plants, and many a mother will be glad to know that she has a stock of some of them stored away for winter use when colds and coughs are prevalent among children or grown people. Some of the old home remedies are far preferable to those we are accustomed to using, as they are harmless, if they do no good, which is something that cannot be said of most drugs that are taken into the system.