Chapter V: Part 5

The plants should be planted as early in the spring as the ground can be gotten into suitable condition, and if purchasing from a nursery, select those plants which are grown from root-cuttings, for they will not “sucker” so much, and where the garden is constantly well fed and cultivated this will save much in working, and the plants being carefully trimmed will last for years without replacing. The rows should be ten or twelve feet apart, so as to admit of free passage in cultivating and picking. As they do not grow so wildly until after the fruit has been picked, a couple of rows of peas or a row of early corn can be grown between each row. I have tried planting at closer distances, with the invariable result that by fall the berry patch was an impassable jungle. For manuring the berries coarse manure should be applied in the fall, or short, well-rotted manure in the spring; in either case plowing it under as applied; if plowed in the fall the furrows should all be thrown toward the rows, thus partly banking them over for the winter.

In the first warm days in the spring these bushes should have their trimming; all the old wood that has borne fruit will be dead and should be cut out at the ground. Three or four good healthy young shoots should be selected to each plant, cut off at three and a half or four feet in height, and the side shoots cut back to three or four inches; cut off all the rest of the suckers. This is important, for if too many are left there will be but a small crop of inferior fruit. When the whole patch has been trimmed and cleared up it should be staked; or each plant may be staked as trimmed, but the trimming will have to be left until a week or so later, as the stakes cannot be driven in the frozen ground. For this purpose I use old fence rails, sawing them in the middle and then splitting each piece into two or three stakes, or the large limbs, say one to two inches thick, left from trimming brush, can be used; the fence-rail stakes, however, last longer than the fresh cut poles, and are much more easily driven.

It will be a great help in picking-time if the row is gone over with a large pair of hedge shears, and the longest of the young shoots shortened in, so as to allow easy access to the row. Where it is more convenient, the bearing wood may be cut out as soon as the crop is gathered, thus throwing all the strength of the plant into the young shoots.

Where there is not plenty of manure, bone dust or phosphate can be sown on after the plowing in the spring and worked down with the harrow or cultivator. It, of course, takes a good deal of rope to tie all these and a good patch of grape vines up every spring, so I go to a printing office and buy the old Sisal rope which comes on the bundles of paper; this is strong, and can be bought very cheaply, as it is all in short lengths, in fact, most offices would be glad to oblige a good subscriber by giving it to him. The bushes should be planted eight feet apart in the row.

GRAPES.

I grow grapes between the rows of berry bushes, half way from each row, which are twelve feet apart. The vines are eight feet apart in the row; at every vine is planted an old fence rail, the ends squared off, and the bottom coated with coal tar before planting; these stand six feet above the surface, and from top to top runs a light pole or single strand of wire. The vines are tied up to the posts and out along the rail; this gives a clear space underneath for keeping the ground worked, and it bears the crop in the most convenient position for gathering. The vines should be trimmed early in February, that the wounds may contract and harden before the sap flows. The vines should be tied up with fresh rope; do not depend on any old ties, as, though they may look strong, the birds will pick them to pieces to make nests of. Trim the vines to long canes, two to four to each post, and divide them at the top, carrying half out the top pole or wire in each direction; cut the side shoots back to two eyes each, as these are the spurs that will furnish the fruit branches. If fruit is desired in finest condition a two-pound paper bag should be tied round the neck, to the stem of each bunch, placing the bunch inside, when the berries are about half grown; this preserves the grapes from mildew and, what is more destructive, the ravages of bees and birds.

STRAWBERRIES.

There should be one or two rows of strawberries across the garden; the rows four feet apart. It will be found a great deal easier to keep them free from weeds and to gather the fruit when grown in this way. The varieties, one early and one late, or both rows of a continuous bearing kind, should be of the perfect flowering character, as there are plenty of varieties of this character which are as good and prolific as any pistillate sort grown, and they are not so much trouble to grow, or as uncertain a crop. The plants should be set early in the spring, in well-manured ground, twelve inches apart in the row, and should be hoed and cultivated as frequently as possible. As the runners start lay them lengthways of the row and let them root in, keeping the soil loose and fine, so that they can easily take hold.

The blossoms should be kept picked off the season of planting, or they will take the strength of the young plant so that it will make but a feeble growth and no runners. In growing the plants in this way the runners should not be allowed to form a row more than one and a half feet wide, as this will be fully two feet in the second season, and as much as a picker can manage. The grass particularly should be kept out of the rows of young plants, or it will take a start in the spring and entirely crowd out the strawberries.

These rows should be set out every spring, taking the plants from the outside of the rows planted the preceding year, as it is almost impossible to keep them free from weeds after the first season, besides which they do not bear more than half so many, nor nearly such large berries, the second season. Unless the ground is very rich where the young plants are set, it is a good plan to sow a heavy coat of phosphate, bone, or, best of all, wood ashes, just before they are worked with the cultivator for the first time in the spring. The young plants should not be planted in land that has just been in sod, as it is full of white grubs, which will eat the plants off underground, and care should also be taken that the manure for the strawberry plot is not infested with them. These rows should be lightly covered with long manure, old hay or other litter, in the fall, after the ground has become frozen hard, so that they may be protected from rapid freezing and thawing; and if the covering is not too heavy, it can be left on in the spring and the plants will shoot up through it, leaving it as a mulch and serving to keep the berries clean, by saving them from contact with the ground, as does the straw mulching, from which the berry is generally supposed to take its name.

In selecting varieties choose those which are recommended as suitable for your soil, heavy or light, or such as have proved good in your immediate neighborhood, as some of the finest kinds are worthless in a different soil from that to which they are adapted. If especially fine, large berries are desired, the plants should be set in rows three feet apart, the plants twelve inches, as before, and all the runners kept cut off as fast as they appear. In this case heavy mulching is imperative, or the stools will be thrown out of the ground in the spring freezing and thawing. When the spring opens, the mulching should be cleared away from the crown of the plant, but should be allowed to remain on the ground surrounding the plant, as the weeds can easily be kept from such a patch, and fresh fertilizer applied. The patch may be continued in bearing for two or three seasons, but it will be found a great deal easier if a fresh patch is planted in new ground each year.

COMPOST.

This should be prepared in the early spring for use in the hills, and if it can be stacked in the fall and allowed to rot through the winter, it will be all the better. It can be composed of barnyard scrapings, well-rotted manure, chicken manure, night soil, or other strong fertilizer, mixed with at least an equal bulk of soil or ashes. This should be wet enough to rot thoroughly, but should not be allowed to lie exposed to the weather where its strength will leach away. When thoroughly mixed, I place it in old barrels under a shed and pour water on top of each barrel occasionally, to keep it rotting.

MANURE.

A good supply of manure should be either made or bought, as the garden should have a good dressing at least two years out of three; the third year I usually use a phosphate, but would use the manure if I could spare it, using also a good dressing of air-slaked lime every two or three years. The manner of applying the lime and phosphate is the same, but they must not be used the same season, as the lime will destroy the effect of the phosphate. They are sown on in the spring, after the ground has been plowed, and before harrowing, the harrow thoroughly mixing them with the soil. The supply of manure may be largely increased by pulling up the early peas, corn, cabbage stalks, etc., as fast as the crops are gathered, and adding them to the manure heap; this should be so located that all slops and waste from the house can be thrown upon it, so as to assist in keeping it constantly rotting; where corn stalks, tall weeds, etc., are put on the manure heap they should be cut into short lengths, with a corn cutter or other implement, to facilitate rotting and handling when the manure is drawn out.

SAVING SEEDS.

The gardener will consult his judgment and his pocketbook in buying seeds, as there are many varieties of which, if he has a good strain, he can save as good seed as he can buy; but the greatest care should be used in doing so, as the quality and quantity will both rapidly deteriorate if inferior specimens are selected from which to save seed. Thus it will not do to take off all the best ears of corn, or the tightest heads of lettuce, using the nubbins and runts for seed, or the next year the nubbins will predominate and the lettuce will go to seed without taking the trouble to form a head at all.

The best plan is to set apart a section of the row of each variety for seed, and not gather any for use from that part; here all the nubbins and inferior specimens could be pulled off, throwing the full strength of the plant into the finest fruits; and the same way with the vines; one or more hills, as desired, could be kept for the purpose of bearing seed only.

All seeds should be thoroughly cleaned and dried, and each package should be carefully marked with name and date before storing. The seed chest should be in some cool place where there is no danger of frost or very warm heat, and, most of all, no danger from dampness. It is important to have the date of saving the seed marked, so that when all is not used it may be kept, as frequently a crop fails from a bad season or other causes, and a new lot of equal merit cannot be obtained, the date serving to tell how good the seed is; seed of some vegetables retaining vitality for only two years, and others as long as ten years.

HOW AND WHAT TO GROW

IN A KITCHEN GARDEN

OF ONE ACRE.

THE SECOND PRIZE ESSAY.

BY MISS L. M. MOLL.

To insure success in horticulture, the first requisite is a deep, rich, well-drained soil. For a garden, nothing can be more important than good drainage. Soil properly drained is warmer, dries faster, and can be worked earlier in the spring; it is easier to work in a wet season, and more open and moist in a dry season. Taking for granted, then, that the ground has perfect drainage, it should be plowed deeply in the fall, so as to allow the frost to penetrate and sweeten the soil. In addition to this, the frost will be out sooner in the spring, and the superfluous moisture drained off more quickly, thus leaving the land in a workable condition at least a week earlier.[17]

Putting manure on the ground in the fall, or during winter, is a practice I would not recommend, because some of its most valuable portions are sure to be washed into the drains by the melting snow and spring rains, leaving the plants rather a meagre supply of nourishment to draw from when they come to need it most. The proper way to do is to give the ground a liberal spreading of thoroughly decomposed barnyard manure in spring, as soon as the land is in a workable condition.[18]

This should immediately be plowed in, and be followed with a sharp, weighted harrow, to thoroughly pulverize and mix the soil. This is important, as the surface of the soil is not so liable to harden or bake afterwards, if the ground is well worked in the spring. The soil is also permeated to a greater depth by the sun and air, causing healthier and quicker growth, consequently better and earlier vegetables. The form of our one-acre patch should, by all means, be a rectangle, made longer than wide, with the rows running lengthwise, and all perfectly straight, and everything else so arranged that as much of the cultivation can be done by horse power as possible. But let me say right here, that no one should undertake the cultivation of a kitchen garden without being willing to do a reasonable portion of the work by hand. This part of the work can, however, be greatly lessened by using the various labor-saving garden implements, to be purchased at reasonable rates, of most seed firms.

If “variety is the spice of life,” it can certainly nowhere be more desirable than in the kitchen garden, which is to supply our table with its yearly demand for choice vegetables; I say _choice_, since every one having the care of a garden should strive to grow everything of the very best, and that, too, in great abundance and variety.

The most convenient mode of arranging the different kinds of vegetables is to; 1st, Place the perennial plants in one bed, running the entire length of the ground; 2d, Plant the vegetables side by side which are to remain out all winter, so as not to interfere with next spring’s plowing; 3d, Arrange side by side those varieties which require the whole season to mature; and, 4th, Put beside each other the quickly maturing kinds, which may be succeeded by other varieties, in order that the ground to be occupied by a second crop may be all in one piece.

The preliminaries being arranged, we are now ready to go into details, and to this end we shall first take under consideration the permanent bed, so called from the fact that it is to contain such perennials as asparagus, rhubarb, horse radish, artichoke, and chives; also parsley, and a collection of herbs, without which no garden is complete.

The herbs are placed here because they require a soil especially prepared for them, by the addition of either fine sand or sifted coal ashes, to make it mellow and dry.

ASPARAGUS.

Asparagus, one of the best and earliest of spring vegetables, would be in universal use, but for the prevalent though erroneous idea that it is difficult to grow. Being a gross feeder, the soil can scarcely be too rich. Although the process of deep trenching is now being discarded, yet, to attain the best result it is necessary that a large quantity of rotted manure be worked into the bed, to a depth of at least 18 inches. Instead of losing two years’ time by raising plants from seed, send and get strong two-year old plants early in spring. Set these in the prepared bed, 18 inches apart each way, and about six inches deep. Give frequent and thorough cultivation, and as soon as the tops are ripe in fall, cut off and burn them, to prevent the nuisance of seedling asparagus about the garden. Next spring, and for at least fifteen years after, the bed should give a full crop, and should have a heavy dressing of manure put on each fall, which should be spaded in before the shoots appear in spring, together with a sprinkling of three pints of salt per square rod.

To facilitate gathering, make the bed of such a width as that the centre can be reached from both sides. Cut all shoots as soon as they appear, till the time for the final cutting, which will vary from the middle of May to the middle of June, according to latitude and your fondness for this most delicious plant.

RHUBARB.

Rhubarb, known familiarly as _Pie Plant_, succeeds best in deep, somewhat retentive soil. Coming, as it does, before berries or fruit, its acid leaf stalks form an admirable substitute. It may be raised from seed, but to get the quickest returns procure strong roots in spring, and plant them three feet apart each way, the ground having first been fertilized and dug to a considerable depth. Never permit a plant to exhaust itself by seed-bearing; stir the soil often, cover with coarse litter in fall, fork it over in the following spring, and you may rely upon a good supply of pie plant for many years to come.

HORSE RADISH.

The best is grown by planting 8-inch lengths of root grown the previous year. These young roots planted in spring, small end down, with the top two inches below the surface, in rich, well-cultivated soil, will form radish of large size and superior quality, in one season’s growth. After having several weeks’ growth rub off the young side roots from the newly-planted roots, to increase the size and insure a smooth, well-shaped root. See to it that no roots are scattered about the garden, as every piece of root, however small it may be, will, in a short time, become a strong plant, difficult to eradicate, and thus prove how annoying a good thing is in the wrong place.

GLOBE ARTICHOKE.

The Globe Artichoke is cultivated for its flower heads, which are cooked like asparagus, in an undeveloped state. On account of its hardiness, easy culture and perennial nature, this plant should be more generally grown. Plants raised from seed sown the previous year, set in any good garden soil two feet apart, with slight covering in winter, will remain in bearing a long time.

JERUSALEM ARTICHOKE.

The Jerusalem Artichoke needs only to be planted in order to thrive. Its _tubers_ can be made into quite palatable pickles, and I have seen instances where, in the absence of cucumber pickles, the artichoke tuber was prepared the same way and used as a substitute.

CHIVES.

Chives are perfectly hardy perennial little members of the onion tribe, and are grown exclusively for their tops, which are used wherever the flavor of onion is required. Planted in small clumps in any common garden soil, they will grow readily, and in time increase so as to render a division necessary. The tops appear very early in spring, and can be shorn throughout the season, hence this valuable little plant should have a place in every garden.

PARSLEY.

As parsley seed is so obstinate about germinating in spring, it does better if sown in autumn, as soon as ripe. Where that is not possible, the seed may be sown in spring, but “don’t look for the plants till you see them coming,” since parsley seed just comes up when it feels like coming up, and not before. The plants should be given a moist, rich soil and a partly-shaded situation. The curled sorts are ornamental, but the plain-leaved is best for general use in cookery. When once established, a supply can easily be kept up from self-sown seed.[19]

AROMATIC HERBS.

Aromatic or _Sweet Herbs_ are worthy of more attention than they generally receive. If cooks used them more freely, doctors would have less occasion for prescribing them. The soil of the herb bed should be mellow and warm, but not over-rich. Deep, fertile soil produces an increase in size and foliage at the expense of fragrance, strength and flavor. The seeds should be sown as early in spring as the ground can be prepared.

_Sweet Basil_, _Summer Savory_, _Sweet Marjoram_, _Sage_ and _Thyme_ are grown for their foliage, which is used for seasoning, while _Sweet Fennel_, _Dill_, _Coriander_, _Anise_ and _Caraway_ are chiefly prized on account of their aromatic seeds. Aside from being useful for culinary purposes, most of the above-named plants possess valuable properties.

This completes the permanent bed.

Before proceeding any further I wish to have it understood that hereafter, in the course of this paper, all seeds advised to be sown broadcast are to be sown in long, narrow beds, with narrow walks between the beds, for convenience in gathering the crop and to protect the plants from being trodden upon.

Where sowing in drills is advised, it is likewise to be understood that all drills are to be not less than eighteen inches apart, and the cultivation between them to be done with a hand cultivator or wheel hoe, followed by hand hoeing between the plants if necessary.

Where planting in rows is recommended, it is intended that all rows, unless otherwise mentioned, should be not less than two and a half feet apart, to admit of the cultivation with a one-horse plow or cultivator, followed also by hand hoeing around the plants or hills.

Concerning the distance plants should be apart in the rows or otherwise, it may be safely said that each plant should stand so that when fully matured its outside leaves will just touch those of its nearest neighbor. This rule does not apply to onions and root crops, which may stand closer.

Concerning the best varieties of the different kinds of vegetables the reader is referred to the catalogues of reliable seedsmen. I shall recommend such varieties as I know to be good from personal experience.

PARSNIPS AND SALSIFY.

Alongside of the permanent bed, plant parsnips and salsify. Parsnip seed germinates slowly and quickly deteriorates by age, therefore early sowing and seed of unquestionable freshness are of primary importance. The subsoil should by all means be thoroughly loosened by the subsoil plow, unless it is naturally of a loose, friable texture. When it is borne in mind that parsnip roots grow wholly under ground, and when well grown measure over eighteen inches in length, the necessity for this will be seen at once. Sow in drills and thin to five inches apart. Parsnips may safely be left in the ground all winter, as frost greatly improves them in saccharine quality.

Salsify or oyster plant, as the name implies, possesses the flavor of the oyster to a marked degree, and is highly esteemed by many on this account. It should have the same treatment in every respect as directed for the parsnip, and like it, too, is improved by frost. In the ground adjoining the parsnips and salsify, plant such vegetables as lettuce, spinach, radish, peas, bush beans, onions, kohl rabi, early cabbage, cauliflower, early potatoes and sweet corn. These mature nearly in the order named, and in time enough to be succeeded by other vegetables which will be mentioned hereafter.

LETTUCE, SPINACH AND RADISH.

Seed of lettuce, spinach and radish should be sown broadcast and as early as possible, with later sowings at intervals of about two weeks for a successive supply. Soil for lettuce and spinach should be of more than ordinary richness, and should contain sufficient moisture to insure rapid continuous growth. The best lettuce heads are raised by sowing seed in a hotbed and transplanting to the open ground when plants are two inches high. Cabbage varieties should be selected for this purpose. In this way I have grown heads of the _New York Lettuce_ to weigh two pounds each, under ordinary treatment. _Hanson_, _Burpee’s Golden Heart_ and _Perpetual Lettuce_ are all good sorts. The _Cos varieties_ do best if tied up a few days before using, to blanch all the inner leaves.

The Radish will thrive in any good garden soil, but a light sandy loam is better than heavily manured ground. In order to be crisp and tender, the growth should be rapid and unchecked. I can recommend _French Breakfast_, _Golden Globe_, _White Stuttgart_ and _Chartiers_. The latter is of unusual merit.

PEAS.

As we all want green peas as early as possible, the seed should be planted early--the earlier the better. Peas will bear a great deal of cold without the slightest injury, either in the ground or after they are up. Sow in drills at the rate of one pint of seed to thirty-five feet of drill. To keep up a succession make a sowing of an early, medium, and a late variety at the same time. In about two weeks make another sowing as before. Soil for early varieties should be warm and very rich. Late varieties should be planted deeper than early sorts, but the soil should not be so rich, as late varieties are more productive on moist, cool ground, not over rich. _Philadelphia Extra Early_, _American Wonder_ and _Telephone_ can be relied upon. After trying various methods for training pea vines I am satisfied that brush is the most effective support. Place a few short twigs or sticks on each side of dwarf peas, to prevent them from leaning over and decaying on the ground, as is often the case in a wet season.

DWARF OR BUSH BEANS.

Dwarf or bush beans should not be planted before danger from frost is over. Being very tender, nothing is gained by planting earlier. They may be planted in hills one foot apart, with four plants to the hill, but the better way, I think, is to plant in drills, with plants three inches apart in the drill.

Seed should be covered lightly with mellow soil. Beans often fail to come up, from being covered too deeply, especially if there is much rain after planting. Two plantings of both early and late varieties, at intervals of two weeks, will give a supply until pole beans come in season. Beans should never be hoed while the foliage is wet, as that produces rust. _Black Wax_, _Early Valentine_ and _Golden Wax_ are standard sorts.

ONIONS.

Onions may be raised successfully either from seed or from sets. If to be grown from seed no time should be lost in getting it sown in the spring. Sow in drills and thin the plants when about the size of quills, disturbing the remaining plants as little as possible. For southern latitudes and for an early supply it is better to grow onions from sets planted three inches apart, in drills. Sets are small onions grown the previous year, from seed sown quite thickly. Sets may be planted very early, as they will not be injured even if the ground should freeze after they are planted. _Wethersfield_ and _Danvers_ are good varieties. For extra large specimens, select _Italian varieties_.

KOHL RABI, EARLY CABBAGE AND CAULIFLOWER.

Seed of kohl rabi, early cabbage and cauliflower should be sown in a hotbed, and the plants transplanted to the open ground when four inches high.

Kohl rabi is grown for its turnip-shaped bulb, which is formed above ground, by the expansion of the stem. The bulb should be used while young and tender, as age detracts from its good quality. Set the plants eight inches apart in the row. For later use sow seed in drills and thin to the proper distance apart. When well grown and properly prepared for the table, the kohl rabi is one of the most desirable of vegetables, and should be in every garden. _Early White Vienna_ is the best variety.

Plant early cabbage in rows, with plants eighteen inches apart in the row. After trying several different sorts I have decided upon _Early Jersey Wakefield_, _Early Flat Dutch_, and _Fottler’s Brunswick_, as the best varieties for this latitude, and, as the cabbage worm has made late cabbage an uncertain crop for several years past here, in southern Illinois, we have planted largely of the Early Flat Dutch cabbage and had it picked and put up before the cabbage worm made its appearance. This I know, from experience, to be better than the use of all the insect powders combined.[20]

To grow cauliflower to perfection, the ground needs extra heavy manuring, and the plants must be supplied with an abundance of water as soon as heads begin to form. Plants should stand the same distance apart as early cabbage. The outside leaves should be pinned together over the centre, to shield the head from the direct rays of the sun, which often cause it to turn green, thus rendering it inferior in quality or entirely unfit for use. _Early Snowball_ and _Erfurt_ are both good and reliable. Nowhere does success depend more on the quality of the seed than in the cauliflower.

SWEET CORN.

Sweet corn should be planted as soon as the ground is reasonably warm, in hills, three feet apart, three plants to a hill. The season for sweet corn can be greatly prolonged by planting early and late sorts, at intervals of a few weeks. There are many good early kinds, but I think the best late variety is _Stowell’s Evergreen_, which produces ears of the largest size, that remain in a condition fit for the table longer than those of any other variety of sweet corn.

POTATOES.

If you wish to enjoy new potatoes early in the season, your seed potatoes must be planted as early in the spring as the ground can be prepared. Plant them one foot apart in the row and cover with the corn plow. I would advise the planting of medium-sized potatoes in preference to large ones cut to pieces. If large ones must be used cut them a few days beforehand, so that the newly cut surface may dry before planting, otherwise, there is danger of the pieces rotting in the ground, especially if there is much rain immediately after planting. The _Early Ohio_ gave us excellent returns for several years in succession.

* * * * *

We will next take under consideration that portion of the garden devoted to the vegetables requiring the greater part of the season to mature. The most important of these are:--

EGG PLANTS, TOMATOES, POLE BEANS, BEETS, CARROTS,
LATE CABBAGE, CUCUMBERS, SQUASHES AND
SWEET POTATOES.

Sow Egg Plant and Tomato seed in a hotbed and remove the young plants to a cold frame when three inches high, from whence do not remove them till the weather is settled and warm.

Egg Plant will repay the extra care it requires, and should be in every garden. Handle the plants very carefully in transplanting, and never remove them to the open ground before the nights are warm. At the North plants may be grown in flower pots plunged in a cold frame till the weather is sufficiently warm. Plants should stand 2½ feet apart in the row, and the soil should be very rich and warm. _New York Purple_ is the leading variety, but those who succeed with the _Black Pekin_ cannot fail to be pleased with its large, glossy fruits.

When all danger from frost is over, carefully transplant the Tomato plants from the cold frame to the open ground, to stand two feet apart in the row. As they grow tie them up on a trellis and remove all superfluous branches, so as to give the growing fruit the benefit of full sunshine, without which it will be of inferior quality and scarcely worth the having.[21] Nothing can be worse than allowing tomato plants to grow along the ground at will without any support. Better it would be not to grow any at all than to degrade them in that manner. Make a small trellis, four feet high, by nailing a few pieces of lath across small stakes driven into the ground. I regard _Livingston’s Perfection_ as an excellent variety, and have grown extra large specimens of the _Mikado_, which, by the way, seems to have been cast in the same mold as the _Turner Hybrid_.[22] Be this as it may, I can heartily recommend either variety to all wishing to grow fine, solid, enormous-sized tomatoes.

POLE BEANS, as the name implies, require poles or some other support for the vines to twine upon. The poles must be set firmly, to prevent being blown over by the wind. Where poles are not procurable, the vines may be trained upon strings stretched up and down along two wires, which are stretched and firmly fastened to posts or stakes, one wire above and the other below. Pole Bean trellis, seven feet high, can be purchased, and will answer the purpose for which they are intended. The best pole bean of its kind is the _Large White Lima_. Being very tender, it should not be planted before the ground is warm. The beans will come up sooner if the eye in the seed is placed downward. The seed should be lightly covered with mellow soil, as this bean, considering its size, has less penetrating power in coming up than any other kind. In rainy seasons I have covered the seed with coffee grounds, which never became compact or hard from the beating rains, and nearly every bean came up nicely, while those covered with earth were almost a total failure.[23] The Large White Lima is generally considered difficult to grow, but I cannot say so, as I have grown it without much difficulty, and had beans to perfection by the pailful throughout the summer. Mine were planted in very rich soil and the rows were about four feet apart, three plants to a hill, and the hills two feet apart. If supported by a trellis, beans should be placed one foot apart in the row. The above applies to all pole beans, whether Limas or string beans. Of the latter class of beans I have found _White Creaseback_ a variety of great merit. _Southern Prolific_ and _Dutch Case Knife_ are also good. At the North, where the seasons are too short for the Large Lima, the _Small Lima_ or _Sieva_, as it is also called, should be planted.

Sow BEET and CARROT seed as early in spring as possible. Sow in drills and thin beets to five inches and carrots to three inches apart in the drill. To have Beets early we sometimes sow seed of an extra early variety in the hotbed and transplant to the garden when plants are a few inches high. The same may be done with early carrots. Sow _Early Scarlet Horn Carrot_ for early use and _Long Red Coreless_ for fall and winter. _Eclipse_ is one of the best early Beets and _Long Blood Red_ is the very best late variety.

Sow late CABBAGE seed in a seed bed, when danger from frost is over, and when plants are three inches high, plant them in rows three feet apart, with plants 2½ feet apart in the row. _Late Flat Dutch_, _Burpee’s Surehead_ and _Large Late Drumhead_ are reliable sorts.

CUCUMBER and SQUASH seeds should under no consideration be planted before the weather is settled and warm, as the young plants are extremely tender and sensitive to cold. Cucumber hills should be four feet apart each way, and squash hills should be six feet apart. Scatter about a dozen seeds in a hill, and when the second pair of leaves have formed, remove all but three of the strongest plants. No fruit should be permitted to ripen on cucumber vines, as this greatly weakens the plant and prevents it from further setting fruit. Pinching off the tips of winter squash vines when they are about three feet long increases their productiveness. _Early Green Cluster_, _White Spine_, and _London Long Green_ are good varieties of cucumbers. The list of desirable squashes is long, but whoever grows the _Pineapple_ and the _Brazil Sugar Squash_ for early use, and the _Essex Hybrid_ and _Hubbard_ for winter use, will not be disappointed.

The term “hills,” as used here and elsewhere in this paper, does not imply heaped-up soil, but simply means that several seeds are to be planted together in one place, on a level with the rest of the ground. This I have found to be better than heaping up the ground to form hills, which soon dry out and are difficult to water.[24]

The only plant requiring hills or ridges is the SWEET POTATO. Throw several furrows together with a plow and draw the soil up with a hoe, to form a tapering ridge; two feet high and three feet wide at the bottom. The plants, which are obtained by planting the tubers in a hotbed, are planted two feet apart on top of this ridge. Being of tropical origin, the sweet potato plants should never be planted till danger from frost is over. One hoeing is generally sufficient, as the vines soon cover the ridge, but these should not be allowed to take root, as that diminishes the productiveness of the plant. Late varieties are of better quality than the early ones.

PEPPERS, GUMBO AND LEEKS.

No garden is complete without at least a few plants of peppers, gumbo and leeks. To grow PEPPERS to perfection, the young plants should be grown in the hotbed and be transplanted to very rich soil, from twelve to eighteen inches apart, according to variety. When they commence blooming, a liberal quantity of hen manure should be strewn around each plant and be hoed in. This will increase the product wonderfully. _Burpee’s Ruby King_ and _Golden Dawn_ are two superb new varieties.

GUMBO, or OKRA, is grown for its seed pods, which are used in soups and stews. Plant the seed eighteen inches apart, when the ground is warm, in spring, and use the pods while young and tender.

Sow LEEK seed very early, in a seed bed, in a sheltered place, if possible. When plants are about six inches long, transplant them to trenches six inches deep, with very rich soil at the bottom. Fill up the trenches as the plants grow, and later draw soil up to them. As a result, you will have fine, large leeks, blanched a foot long, which may be kept all winter if dug up with the roots on, and stored in moist sand in the cellar. Aside from being valuable for soups and salads, blanched leek makes an excellent dish when sliced and cooked like green peas. This fact does not seem to be generally known, as well-grown leek is so seldom seen in kitchen gardens.[25]

We will now go back again to the ground adjoining the parsnips and salsify. The early vegetables will mature and be harvested one after the other, so that there will be enough vacant ground in time for--

CELERY, ENDIVE, TURNIPS, WINTER RADISHES, KALE,
CORN SALAD, WINTER LETTUCE AND WINTER
SPINACH.

Sow CELERY seed in a hotbed or cold frame. When a few inches high, plant five inches apart, in a bed, in the open ground, which should be especially prepared for the purpose by extra heavy manuring. Let the plants remain in this bed, to grow strong and stocky. Never let the ground in this bed become dry; give thorough cultivation and cut off the tops of the plants once or twice, to make them grow stocky. When six or eight inches high, lift the plants carefully and set them six or eight inches apart, in trenches a foot wide and fourteen or more inches in depth. Several inches of rotted stable manure should be mixed with the soil at the bottom of the trench. When planting, firm the ground well around each plant. Supply enough water to keep the ground at the bottom of the trench very moist all the time. As the plants grow, press soil around the bottom of each plant and tie together at the top with string, to keep the stems straight and in an upright position. The blanching or earthing up is done by gradually filling up the trench with ground as the plants grow. Care should be taken not to get any ground into the hearts of the plants and never to earth up while they are wet. Sowing seed in the open ground and growing plants on the level surface may do for cool northern latitudes, but my experience is that it will not do here in southern Illinois. _Boston Market_ and _Crawford’s Half Dwarf_ are as good as any of the taller varieties, and are more easily blanched.[26]

Seed of ENDIVE should not be sown early, as this plant is grown chiefly for late summer and autumn salad. In this latitude we sow at intervals from the middle of June to the 1st of August. Seed may be sown either broadcast or in drills, but the plants should be thinned so as to stand from six to nine inches apart. It may also be sown in a seed bed and be transplanted to the proper distance apart. When the plants are full grown, tie all the outside leaves together over the heart, to blanch the inner leaves, which will take about a week. To keep up a constant supply, some should be tied up every few days. Never tie up when the leaves are wet or they will soon decay. _Green Curled_ and _Batavian_ are both very good.[27]

TURNIP and winter RADISH seed may be sown from the latter part of July to the middle of August. If the ground is reasonably free from weed seeds it is advisable to sow broadcast, otherwise it is better to sow in drills. In either case, it is well to remember that the plants should be, like the first settlers, without a near neighbor. The size and quality of the turnips and radishes will depend, to a great extent, upon thin sowing of the seed, or, what is still better, a judicious thinning of the plants when young. The largest and sweetest turnips we have ever grown were of the _Purple Top Strap-leaved_ variety, and were grown as a second crop after onions. The seed was sown broadcast, and no further attention given the plants except thinning while young. In the same manner and on similar soil we raised _White_ and _Black Spanish_ winter radishes of excellent quality, that weighed from four to seven pounds each. The _Chinese Rose_, though not so large, is the handsomest and one of the best winter radishes grown. The _California Mammoth_ is a superb fall radish, but does not keep well in winter. The _White Stuttgart_ is regarded as a summer radish, but I have had it, grown as a winter radish, to keep firm and solid till April.

KALE, or BORECOLE, is a valuable plant for spring greens. The variety called _Dwarf German Greens_ is best for this purpose. Sow seed in drills about September 1st, and give thorough cultivation till the approach of cold weather. When winter sets in, give protection with a covering of straw or similar material, put on so as not to smother the plants. The most effective way of doing this is to place a layer of fine brush or cornstalks between the drills, to a height equal to or exceeding the height of the plants in the drills. Then cover all with a layer of clean straw, six inches deep. The object of putting the brush between the drills is to provide an air cavity between the plants and the covering.[28]

CORN SALAD, or VETTICOST, is a valuable little plant which is used for salad, the same as lettuce. For spring use, sow the seed any time during the month of September, and at the approach of cold weather cover the bed with a few inches of straw or hay. It should be used very early in spring, as it soon runs to seed when warm weather sets in. Although this plant will bear neglect, it will also repay good treatment.

Seed of winter SPINACH and winter LETTUCE should also be sown during the month of September, and the plants should be protected with a covering of straw, or similar material, during winter. Put on part of the covering when the ground begins to freeze, and as the cold increases, add covering till it reaches a depth of four or five inches. In regions where heavy snowfalls can be depended upon, it may not be necessary to protect any of the above-named plants, but here and elsewhere, where winters are severe and the snowfall light, it is of the utmost importance to provide protection, or no success need be expected. _Hammersmith_ is the best winter lettuce, and _Round Leaf_ and _Prickly Winter_ are two good varieties of spinach for fall sowing.

The beds of kale, corn salad, winter lettuce and winter spinach should be arranged side by side, and alongside of the parsnips and salsify, so as not to interfere with the plowing of the ground in fall and in spring. As some of the parsnips and salsify will be left in the ground to be dug at leisure in spring, it is best to have all these vegetables side by side, so that when the parsnips and salsify[29] are dug, and the crop of kale, corn salad, etc., harvested, the whole ground can be plowed at once.

Before closing, a few words in regard to watering and transplanting may not prove amiss.

The best time for watering is in the evening. Though water may be given to the roots at any time, it should never be sprinkled on the foliage in the hot sun, as that causes brown spots or blisters where it comes in contact with the leaves. More injury than good results from beginning to water a plant, and then not keeping it up till the necessity ceases. As soon as the ground begins to get dry after watering, the soil should be stirred with the hoe. When you start to water a plant, do it thoroughly, so as to give the roots a soaking at every watering, or else do not water at all.

The main points to be regarded in transplanting, are handling the plant carefully, so as to injure the roots as little as possible, planting firmly and shading to prevent the sun from withering or scorching the leaves. It should be borne in mind, that it is not nature’s design that a plant should be transplanted, and we ought to show sympathy for a plant as well as for our fellow-creatures.

And now, having taken a walk with you through the kitchen garden, all I have further to say is, may you be favored with seasonable rain and sunshine, for, be it remembered, without the co-operation of the elements all our efforts are in vain.

INDEX.

Aromatic herbs, 176.

Artichoke, Globe, 175.
Jerusalem, 175.

Asparagus, 40, 173.
varieties of, 43.
Barr’s Mammoth, 43.
Conover’s Colossal, 43.
Purple Top, 43.

Beans, 43.
Bush Beans, 46, 180.
Best of All Dwarf Bean, 46.
Black Wax, 180.
Burpee’s Perfection Wax, 44.
Champion Bush Bean, 48.
Early Valentine, 180.
Golden Wax, 46, 180.
Limas, 50.
Dreer’s Improved Lima, 50.
Extra Early Lima, 50.
King of the Garden, 50.
Pole Beans, Snap Varieties, 48, 185.
Burpee’s White Zulu, 48.
Dutch Case Knife, 186.
Golden Wax Flageolet, 48.
Large White Lima, 185.
Lazy Wife’s, 48.
Southern Prolific, 186.
White Creaseback, or Best of All, 48, 186.

Beets, 51.
varieties of, 52.
Burpee’s Improved Blood Turnip, 54.
Eclipse, 52, 187.
Edmand’s Early Turnip, 52.
Long Blood Red, 187.

Blackberries, 161.
Gregg Black Cap, 161.
Wilson, Jr., 161.
Wilson’s Early, 161.

Borecole, 192.

Cabbages, 54.
Early or Summer, 54, 181.
Early varieties of, 61.
Early Flat Dutch, 181.
Early Jersey Wakefield, 61, 181.
Early Summer, 61.
Extra Early Etampes, 61.
Extra Early Express, 61.
Fottler’s Brunswick, 181.
Vandergaw, 61.
Late or Winter, 55.
Late varieties of, 61.
Burpee’s Surehead, 61, 187.
Danish Ball Head, 63.
Large Late Drumhead, 187.
Late Flat Dutch, 187.
Short-stem Drumhead, 63.

Cantaloupe, or Musk Melon, 69.
varieties of, 72.
Burpee’s Netted Gem, 72.
Emerald Gem, 72.
Montreal Green Nutmeg, 74.

Carrots, 67.
varieties of, 67.
Danvers Half-long Orange, 67.
Early Very Short Horn, or Golden Ball, 68.
Ox Heart, 68.
Red Saint Vallery, 69.
Short Horn, 67.

Cauliflower, 65, 181.
varieties of, 66.
Burpee’s Best Early, 67.
Early Snowball, 66, 182.
Extra Early Dwarf Erfurt, 66, 182.

Celery, 74, 189.
varieties of, 80.
Boston Market, 190.
Crawford’s Half Dwarf, 190.
Crimson or Red Celery, 82.
Dwarf Golden Heart, 81.
Golden Self-blanching, 81.

Celery, White Plume, 82.

Chicorée, 191.

Chives, 175.

Cold frames and hotbeds, 21.

Compost, 166.

Corn Salad, 192.

Corn, Sweet, 83, 182.
varieties of, 85.
Amber Cream, 86.
Crosby’s Early Twelve-rowed, 86.
Potter’s Excelsior, 86.
Stowell’s Evergreen, 86, 182.
The Cory, 85.

Cucumbers, 87.
varieties of, 89.
Burpee’s Giant Pera, 89.
Early Green Prolific, 89, 187.
Early Russian, 89.
Improved Early White Spine, 89, 187.
London Long Green, 89, 187.

Currants, 159.

Dewberry, Lucretia, 161.

Diagram of the garden, 15, 16, 172.
Key to the, 17.

Dwarf or Bush Beans, 180.

Early or Summer Cabbages, 54.

Egg Plant, 91, 183.
varieties of, 94.
Black Pekin, 184.
Extra Early Dwarf Round Purple, 94.
New York Improved Large Purple, 94, 184.

Endive, 191.
Batavian, 191.
Green Curled, 191.

Garden, diagram of the, 15, 16.
laying out the, 12.
planting the, 35.
situation of the, 9.
soil of the, 11.

Globe Artichoke, 175.

Gooseberries, 159.

Grapes, 163.

Gumbo, 188.

Hammond’s Slug Shot, 91.

Hops, 95.

Horse Radish, 94, 174.

Hotbeds and cold frames, 21.

Jerusalem Artichoke, 175.

Kale, or Borecole, 192.
Dwarf German Greens, 192.

Key to diagram, 17.

Kohl Rabi, 181, 189.
Early White Vienna, 181.

Late or Winter Cabbages, 55.

Laying out the garden, 12.

Leeks, 188, 189.

Lettuce, 96, 178, 193.
varieties of, 100.
Burpee’s Golden Heart, 179.
Burpee’s Hard-Head, 100.
Burpee’s Silver Ball, 101.
Burpee’s Tomhannock, 100.
Cos, 179.
Hammersmith, 193.
New York, 179.
Perpetual, 179.
Philadelphia White Cabbage, 102.
Stonehead Golden Yellow, 101.
The Deacon, 102.
The Hanson, 102, 179.
The Tennis Ball, 102.

Lucretia Dewberry, 161.

Manure, 167.

Musk Melon, 69.

Okra, 102, 189.

Onions, 103, 180.
varieties of, 108.
Large Red Wethersfield, 109, 181.
White Globe, 109.
White Silverskin, or White Portugal, 109.
Yellow Globe Danvers, 108, 181.
Italian varieties of, 110, 181.
Burpee’s Mammoth Silver King, 112.
Earliest White Green, 111.
Giant Red Rocca, 110.
Giant Yellow Rocca, 111.

Parsley, 112, 176.
Extra Curled Dwarf, 113.

Parsnips, 113, 178.

Parsnips, varieties of, 115.
Improved Guernsey, 115.

Peas, 115, 179.
varieties of, 117.
American Wonder, 118, 180.
Burpee’s Extra Early, 117.
Burpee’s Quality, 120.
Burpee’s Quantity, 120.
Champion of England, 120.
Extra Early Premium Gem, 118.
Laxton’s Earliest of All, 118.
Laxton’s Evolution, 119.
Philadelphia Extra Early, 180.
Pride of the Market, 118.
Telephone, 180.
The Stratagem, 119.

Peppers, 121, 188.
varieties of, 122.
Bull Nose and Golden Dawn, 123, 189.
Burpee’s Golden Upright, 123.
Burpee’s Ruby King, 122, 189.
Celestial Pepper, 124.
Long Narrow Cayenne, 124.
Procopp’s Giant, 124.
Red Cluster, 123.
Spanish Monstrous, 124.

Pie Plant, 174.

Planting the garden, 35.

Pole Beans, 185.

Potatoes, 133, 183.
Early Ohio, 183.
Sweet, 135, 188.

Procuring the seeds and plants, 15.

Pumpkins, 125.
varieties of, 126.
Golden Marrow, 126.
Quaker Pie, 126.
Saint George or Old Negro, 126.
Small Sugar, 126.

Radishes, 126, 178, 191.
varieties of, 128.
Burpee’s Earliest, 128.
California Mammoth White Winter, 128, 192.
Chinese Rose Winter, 128, 192.
Earliest Carmine, Olive-shaped, 130.
Early Long Scarlet Short Top. 129.
Early Oval Dark Red, 130.
Early Round Dark Red, 130.
Early White Turnip, 130.
French Breakfast, 130, 179.
Half Long Scarlet, 130.
Round Black Spanish Winter, 128, 192.
White-tipped Turnip, 130.
Wood’s Early Frame, 130.
Summer varieties of, 131.
Burpee’s Surprise, 132.
Chartiers or Shepherd, 132, 179.
Giant White Stuttgart, 131, 179, 192.
Golden Globe, 131, 179.
Long White Globe, 132.
Long White Vienna, 131.
White Strasburg, 132.
Winter varieties of, 132.
California Mammoth White, 132, 192.
Chinese Rose, 133.
White Spanish, 192.

Raspberries, Black Cap and Red, 161.
Philadelphia and Cuthbert, 161.