The Busy Woman's Garden Book

by Ida D. Bennett

So many enemies conspire against the pea that close watch must be kept from the planting of the seed until the plants are well above the ground. Usually the chief depredation comes from moles which run along underneath the seed and destroy it; poisoned bait placed in the trench along with the seed often destroys the moles before much damage is done. A mole trap set at each end of the row or at the point where the mole enters the run will often prove effective. A very successful home made trap consists of a large can or crock—a lard can is good, sunk in the ground and a trap consisting of a long, endless box with about a third of the bottom sawed apart and pivoted on nails driven through the side, so that anything entering at one end will drop through the swinging trap into the can beneath, which should be kept full of water; this arrangement will catch more moles than any steel trap with which I am familiar, and as the presence of the moles in the garden threatens other vegetables as well as the peas it will be time well spent to prepare one or more of these traps for use when occasion arises; the making of these traps may well be put on the list of rainy day tasks.

Cutworms sometimes take the peas as fast as they appear above the ground; poisoned bait along the rows before the peas break the ground will dispose of this enemy. Blackbirds often destroy a planting of peas before their presence is suspected and English sparrows have been known to do much damage, so if one would enjoy fresh, home grown peas one must exercise due vigilance.

The use of Mulford and other cultures for inoculating peas is growing in practice among the most progressive gardeners and is a very wise precaution to take; especially is it desirable in intensive culture suggested by growing two crops of peas on the same strip of land. Peas, like all legumes, are nitrogen feeders and gatherers and the use of the culture supplies the young plant, at the start, with nitrogen and puts it in shape to begin the accumulation of nitrogen from the air by its own efforts. The nitrogen gathered from the air is stored up on the roots in the form of nodules or bunches, and it is for this reason that the growing of all legumes is so beneficial to the soil. If when the first planting of peas is matured and gathered the vines are cut or broken off close to the ground, instead of being pulled up, root and all, this supply of nitrogen will remain in the soil and be available for the succeeding crop.

The inoculating of the seed is very simple: the small bottles, which, by the way, cost but twenty-five cents for garden size, are only one-fourth full; simply fill up the bottle with water and moisten the seed before planting; this is all, and the same bottle will supply inoculating material for the beans which also being legumes respond favorably to the treatment.

RADISHES

A few radishes may be grown in the hotbed for very early use, but the main planting should be in the open ground. It is hardly worth while to devote any definite part of the garden to radishes as room can be found for them among the other vegetables. An excellent way to grow them is to drop seeds at intervals along the rows of beets, carrots, parsnips and salsify. All these seeds are slow in germinating and by dropping in occasional radish seeds which germinate in from three to five days the rows will be marked so that they may be kept cultivated without waiting for the plants to appear and indicate the rows. A surprising amount of radishes will be grown in this way, without any special labor and loss of ground; and they will be out of the way before the ground is needed for the permanent occupant of the row.

The turnip rooted sorts are the most quickly and easily grown, the Twenty Day as its name indicates being ready for use in twenty days and the French Breakfast and Improved Breakfast Radish being ready in twenty-five; both of these are very tender, crisp and mild sorts and beautiful in appearance, white at the base and scarlet above, making a beautiful appearance when prepared for the breakfast table with a bit of the green top for contrast. For those who prefer a white radish the Icicle Radish is a fine sort, crisp and tender and does not grow coarse or pithy until quite large.

If one wishes to devote a definite space to radishes and maintain a succession of plants it will be a good plan to drop a seed in the ground for each radish pulled; in this way there will be a constant supply of young, crisp radishes all summer.