Chapter XI: Part 11

The whole subject is not exhausted by this mode of viewing it, for all the facts are not yet fully understood by the ablest of our chemists and physiologists, and crops differ in their methods of seeking nourishment. We might find two distinct plants nearly agreeing in chemical constitution, and yet one might fail where the other would succeed. Suppose, for instance, we have grown Cabbage and other surface-rooting crops until the soil begins to fail, even then we might obtain from it a good crop of Parsnips or Carrots, for the simple reason that these send their roots down to a stratum that the Cabbage never reached; and it is most instructive to bear in mind that although the Parsnip will grow on poor land, and pay on land that has been badly tilled for years, yet the ashes of the Parsnip contain thirty-six per cent. of potash, eleven per cent. of lime, eighteen per cent. of phosphoric acid, six per cent. of sulphuric acid, three per cent. of phosphate of iron, and five per cent. of common salt. How does the Parsnip obtain its mineral food in a soil which for other crops appears to be exhausted? Simply by pushing down for it into a mine that has hitherto been but little worked, though Cabbage might fail on the same plot because the superficial stratum has been overtaxed.

Having attempted a general, we now proceed to a particular application. In the first place, good land, well tilled and abundantly manured, cannot be soon exhausted; but even in this case a rotation of crops is advisable. It is less easy to say why than to insist that in practice we find it to be so. The question then arises—What is a rotation of crops? It is the ordering of a succession in such a manner that the crops will tax the soil for mineral aliments in a different manner. A good rotation will include both chemical and mechanical differences, and place tap-roots in a course between surface roots, as, for example, Carrot, Parsnip, and Beet, after Cabbage, Cauliflower, and Broccoli; and light, quick surface crops, such as Spinach, to serve as substitutes for fallows. The cropping of the kitchen garden should be, as far as possible, so ordered that plants of the same natural families never immediately succeed one another; and, above all things, it is important to shift from place to place, year after year, the Cabbages and the Potatoes, because these are the most exhaustive crops we grow. In a ton of Potatoes there are about twelve pounds of potash, four pounds of sulphuric acid, four pounds of phosphoric acid, and one pound of magnesia. We may replace these substances by abundant manuring, and we are bound to say that the best rotation will not obviate the necessity for manuring; but even then it is well to crop the plot with Peas, Spinach, Lettuce, and other plants that occupy it for a comparatively brief space of time, and necessitate much digging and stirring; for these mechanical agencies combine with the manure in preparing the plot to grow Potatoes again much better than if the land were kept to this crop only from year to year. If we could mark out a plot of ground into four parts, we should devote one plot to permanent crops—such as Asparagus, Sea Kale, and Rhubarb—and on the other three keep the crops revolving in some such order as this: No. 1, Potatoes, Celery, Leek, Carrot, Parsnip, Beet, &c. No. 2, Peas, Beans, Onions, Summer Spinach, &c., followed by Turnips for winter use, Cabbage for spring use, and Winter Spinach. No. 3, Brassicas, including Broccoli, Brussels Sprouts, Kale, &c. In the following year the original No. 1 would be cropped as No. 2, and No. 2 as No. 3. In the third season corresponding changes would be made, constituting a three-course system. The cultivator must use discretion in cropping vacant ground. As an example it will be obvious that land cleared of Early Potatoes will be very suitable for planting Strawberries. Another point is worth attention: Peas sown on the lines where Celery has been grown will thrive without any preparation beyond levelling the ground and drawing the necessary drills. This is a West of England custom, and it answers exceedingly well.

THE CHEMISTRY OF GARDEN CROPS

A Consideration of the chemistry of the crops that engage attention in this country will afford an explanation of one great difference between farming and gardening. And this difference should be kept in mind by all classes of cultivators as the basis of operations in tillage, cropping, and the order and character of rotations. The first thing to discover in the cropping of a farm is the kind of vegetation for which the land is best adapted to insure, in a run of seasons, fairly profitable results. If the soil is unfit for cereals, then it is sheer folly to sow any more corn than may be needful for convenience, as, for example, to supply straw for thatching and litter, and oats for horses, to save cost of carriage, &c. On large farms that are far removed from markets it is often necessary to risk a few crops that the land is ill fitted for, in order to satisfy the requirements of the homestead, and to save the outlay of money and the inconvenience of hauling from distant markets. But everywhere the cropping must be adapted to the soil and the climate as nearly as possible, both to simplify operations and enlarge to the utmost the chances of success. In the cropping of a garden this plain procedure cannot be followed. We are compelled certainly to consider what the soil and climate will especially favour amongst garden crops, but, notwithstanding this, the gardener must grow whatever the household requires. He may have to grow Peas on a hot shallow sand; and Potatoes and Carrots on a cold clay; and Asparagus on a shallow bed of pebbles and potsherds. To the gardener the chemistry of crops is a matter of great importance, because he cannot restrict his operations to such crops as the land is particularly adapted for, but must endeavour to make the land capable of carrying more or less of all the vegetables and fruits that find a place in the catalogue of domestic wants. That he must fail at certain points is inevitable; nevertheless his aim will be, and must be, of a somewhat universal kind, and a clear idea of the relations of plants to the soil in which they grow will be of constant and incalculable value to him.

We are bound to say at the outset that a complete essay on the chemistry of vegetation is not our purpose. We are anxious to convey some useful information, and to kindle sufficient interest to induce those who have hitherto given but slight attention to this question to inquire further, with a view to get far beyond the point at which we shall have to quit the subject.

Plants consist of two classes of constituents—the Inorganic, which may be called the foundation; and the Organic, which may be considered the superstructure. With the former of these we are principally concerned here. A plant must derive from the soil certain proportions of silica, lime, sulphur, phosphates, alkalies, and other mineral constituents, or it cannot exist at all; but, given these, the manufacture of fibre, starch, gum, sugar, and other organic products depends on the action of light, heat, atmospheric air, and moisture, for the organic products have to be created by chemical (or vital) action within the structure, or, as we sometimes say, the tissues of the plant itself. To a very great extent the agencies that conduce to the elaboration of organic products are beyond our control (though not entirely so), whereas we can directly, and to a considerable degree, provide the plant with the minerals it more particularly requires; first, by choosing the ground for it, and next by tilling and manuring in a suitable manner. A clay soil, in which, in addition to the predominating alumina, there is a fair proportion of lime, may be regarded as the most fertile for all purposes; but we have few such in Britain, our clays being mostly of an obdurate texture, retentive of moisture, and requiring much cultivation, and containing, moreover, salts of iron in proportions and forms almost poisonous to plants. But there are profound resources in most clays, so that if it is difficult to tame them, it is also difficult to exhaust them. Hence a clay that has been well cultivated through several generations will generally produce a fair return for whatever crop may be put upon it. Limestone soils are usually very porous and deficient of clay, and therefore have no sustaining power. Many of our great tracts of mountain limestone are mere sheep-walks, and would be comparatively worthless except for the lime that may be obtained by burning. On the other hand, chalk, which is a more recent form of carbonate of lime, is often highly productive, more especially where, through long cultivation, it has been much broken up, and has become loamy through accumulation of humus. Between the oldest limestone and the latest chalk there are many intermediate kinds of calcareous soils, and they are mostly good, owing to their richness in phosphates, the products of the marine organisms of which these rocks in great part, and in some cases wholly, consist. For the growth of cereals these calcareous soils need a certain proportion of silica, and where they have this we see some of the finest crops of Wheat, Trifolium, Peas and Beans in these islands. If we could mix some of our obdurate clays with our barren limestones, the two comparatively worthless staples would probably prove remarkably fertile. Although this is impossible, a consideration of the chemistry of the imaginary mixture may be useful, more especially to the gardener, who can in a small way accomplish many things that are impracticable on a great scale. Sandy soils are characterised by excess of silica, and deficiency of alumina, phosphates and potash. Here the mechanical texture is as serious a matter as it is in the case of clay. The sand is too loose as the clay is too pasty, and it may be that we have to prevent the estate from being blown away. It is especially worthy of observation, however, that sandy soils are the most readily amenable of any to the operation of tillage. If we cannot take much out of them, we can put any amount into them, and it is always necessary to calculate where the process of enrichment is to stop. It is not less worthy of observation that sandy soils can be rendered capable of producing almost every kind of crop, save cereals and pulse, and even these can be secured where there is some basis of peat or loam or clay with the sand. The parks and gardens of Paris, Versailles, and Haarlem are on deep sands that drift before the wind when left exposed for any length of time with no crop upon them; and not only do we see the finest of Potatoes and the most nutritious of herbage produced on these soils, but good Cauliflowers, Peas, Beans, Onions, fruits, and big trees of sound timber.

Garden soils usually consist of loam of some kind, the consequence of long cultivation. Natural loams are the result of the decay and admixture of various earths, and they are mostly of a mellow texture, easily worked and highly productive. They are, as a rule, the best of all soils, and their goodness is in part due to the fact that they contain a little of everything, with no great predominance of any one particular earth. Cultivation also produces loam. On a clay land we find a top crust of clayey loam, and on a lime or chalk land a top crust of calcareous loam. Where cultivation has been long pursued the staple is broken and manures are put on, and the roots of plants assist in disintegration and decomposition. Thus there is accumulation of humus and a decomposition of the rock proceeding together, and a loam of some sort is the result. Hence the necessity of caution in respect of deep trenching, for if we bury the top soil and put in its place a crude material that has not before seen daylight, we may lose ten years in profitable cropping, because we must now begin to tame a savage soil that we have been at great pains to bring up, to cover a stratum of a good material prepared for us by the combined operations of Nature and Art during, perhaps, several centuries. But deep and good garden soils may be safely trenched and freely knocked about, because not only does the process favour the deep rooting of the plants, but it favours also that disintegration which is one of the causes of fertility. Every pebble is capable of imparting to the soil a solution—infinitesimal, perhaps, but not the less real—of silica, or lime, or potash, or phosphates, or perhaps of all these; but it must be exposed to light and air and moisture to enable it to part with a portion of its substance, and thus it is that mechanical tillage is of the first importance in all agricultural and horticultural operations.

The principal inorganic or mineral constituents of plants are potash, soda, lime, iron, phosphorus, sulphur, chlorine, and silica. Clays and loams are generally rich in potash, sulphur, and phosphates, but deficient in soluble silica and lime. Limestone and chalk are usually rich in lime and phosphates, but deficient in humus, silica, sulphur, and alkalies. Sandy soils are rich in silica, but are generally poor in respect of phosphates and alkalies. Therefore, on a clay or loam, farmyard manure is invaluable, because it contains ingredients that all crops appreciate, and also because it is helpful in breaking up the texture of the soil. The occasional application of lime also is important for its almost magical effect on garden soil that has been liberally manured and heavily cropped for a long term of years. Calcareous soils are greatly benefited by a free application to them of manure from the stable and cow-byre; but as a rule it would be like carrying coals to Newcastle to dress these soils with lime. Clay may be put on with advantage; and nothing benefits a hot chalky soil more than a good dose of mud from ponds and ditches, which supplies at once humus, alumina, and silicates, and gives ‘staple’ to the soil, while preventing it also from ‘burning.’ In the manuring of sandy soils great care is requisite, because of their absorbing power. In the bulb-growing districts of Holland, manure from cowsheds is worth an enormous price for digging into loose sand for a crop of Potatoes, to be followed by bulbs. Sandy soils are generally deficient in phosphates and alkalies; hence it will on such soils be frequently found that kainit (a crude form of potash) and superphosphate of lime will conjointly produce the best results, more especially in raising Potatoes, Onions, and Carrots, which are particularly well adapted for sandy soils. Probably one of the best fertilisers is genuine farmyard manure from stall-fed cattle, for it contains phosphates, alkalies, and silicates in available forms. For similar reasons Peruvian Guano is often useful on such soils. Artificial manure should be selected with a view to correct the deficiencies of the soil, and to satisfy the requirements of the crops to be grown on it.

While we have thus dealt principally with the Inorganic or mineral constituents of plants, and the way in which the deficiencies of the soil in respect of any of them may be supplied by artificial applications, we must not ignore the other class of constituents, the Organic. These are supplied almost entirely from the atmosphere itself, though, to a limited extent, the presence in the soil of humus or vegetable matter contributes also. Yet this latter, as seen in the case of land heavily dressed with farmyard or stable manure, vegetable refuse, &c., exercises important functions in other directions. Not only are mineral constituents, in forms available for assimilation, supplied, but soils so treated derive peculiar advantages as regards their mechanical state and improved physical conditions, chiefly in respect of retention of moisture, warmth, &c. Thus, sandy soils, which are very apt, through poverty in humus, to lose their moisture readily and to ‘burn,’ are rendered more retentive of moisture and fertilising constituents by the use of farmyard manure, &c., and have more ‘staple’ or substance given to them, while heavy, tenacious clays are opened out, lightened, and rendered more amenable to the influences of drainage, aeration, &c., and so become less cold and inactive.

For the present purpose the principal garden crops may be grouped in two classes, in accordance with their main characteristics and the predominance of certain of their mineral elements. The figures given on the following page show the average percentage proportions of the several minerals in the ashes of the different plants.

In Class I. Phosphates and Potash predominate. This class consists of the less succulent plants, and includes the following: The Pea: containing, in 100 parts of the ashes, phosphates, thirty-six; potash, forty. Bean: phosphates, thirty; potash, forty-four. Potato (tubers only): phosphates, nineteen; potash, fifty-nine; soda, two; lime, two; sulphuric acid, six. Parsnip: phosphates, eighteen; potash, thirty-six; lime, eleven; salt, five. Carrot: phosphates, twelve; potash, thirty-six; soda, thirteen; sulphuric acid, six. Jerusalem Artichoke: phosphates, sixteen; potash, sixty-five.

In Class II. Sulphur, Lime and Soda Salts are predominant. This class consists of the more succulent plants, and includes the following: Cabbage: containing, in 100 parts of the ashes, phosphates, sixteen; potash, forty-eight; soda, four; lime, fifteen; sulphuric acid, eight. Turnip: phosphates, thirteen; potash, thirty-nine; soda, five; lime, ten; sulphuric acid, fourteen. Beet: phosphates, fourteen; potash, forty-nine; soda, nineteen; lime, six; sulphuric acid, five.

As a matter of course, Lentils and other kinds of pulse agree more or less with Peas and Beans in the predominance of phosphates and potash. So, again, all the Brassicas, whether Kales, Cauliflower, or whatever else, agree nearly with the Cabbage in the prominent presence of lime and sulphur; ingredients which fully account for the offensive odour of these vegetables when in a state of decay. Fruits as a rule are highly charged with alkalies, and are rarely deficient in phosphates; moreover, stone-fruits require lime, for they have to make bone as well as flesh when they produce a crop. As regards the alkalies, plants appear capable of substituting soda for potash under some circumstances, but it would not be prudent for the cultivator to assume that the cheaper alkali might take the place of the more costly one as a mineral agent, for Nature is stern and constant in her ways, and it can hardly be supposed that a plant in which potash normally predominates can attain to perfection in a soil deficient in potash, however well supplied it may be with soda. The cheaper alkali in combination as salt (chloride of sodium) may, however, be usually employed in aid of quick-growing green crops; and more or less with tap-roots and Brassicas. Salt, too, is very useful in a dry season by reason of its power of attracting and retaining moisture. As regards Potatoes, it is worthy of observation that they contain but a trace of silica, and yet they generally thrive on sand, and in many instances crops grown on sand are free from disease and of high quality, although the weight may not be great. The mechanical texture of the soil has much to do with this; and when that is aided by a supply of potash and phosphates, whether from farmyard manure or artificials, sandy soils become highly productive of Potatoes of the very finest quality. On the other hand, Potatoes also grow well on limestone and chalk, and yet there is but little lime in them. Here, again, mechanical texture explains the case in part, and it is further explained by the sufficiency of potash and phosphates, as also of magnesia, which enters in a special manner into the mineral constitution of this root.

Thus far we have not even mentioned nitrogen, or its common form of salts of ammonia; nor have we mentioned carbon, or its very familiar form of carbonic acid. These are important elements of plant growth; and they account for the efficacy of manures derived directly from the animal kingdom, as, for example, the droppings of animals, including guano, which consisted originally of the droppings of sea-birds. Some of the nitrogen in these substances, however, is of an evanescent character, and rapidly flies away in the form of carbonate of ammonia; hence, a heap of farmyard manure, left for several years, loses much of its value as manure, and guano should be kept in bulk as long as possible, and protected from the atmosphere, or its ammonia will largely disappear. One difficulty experienced by chemists and others in preparing artificial manures is that of ‘fixing’ the needful ammonia, so that it may be kept from being dissipated in the atmosphere, and at the same time be always in a state in which it can be appropriated by the plant. In all good manures, however, there is a certain proportion of it in combination, and in many instances the percentage of nitrogen is made the test of the value of a manure.

The importance of humus—the black earthy substance resulting from the decay of vegetation—in a soil is that it contains in an assimilable form many of the ingredients essential to plant life. Humus when it decomposes gives off carbonic acid, which breaks up the mineral substances in the soil and renders them available as plant food. When vegetable refuse is burned, the nitrogen—one of the costliest constituents—is dissipated and lost. But by burying the refuse the soil gets back a proportion of the organic nitrogen it surrendered and something over in the way of soluble phosphatic and potassic salts; and as this organic nitrogen assumes ultimately the form of nitric acid, it can be assimilated by the growing plant, to the great benefit of whatever crop may occupy the ground.

The practical conclusion is, that in the treatment of the soil a skilful gardener will endeavour to promote its fertility by affording the natural influences of rain, frost and sun full opportunity of liberating the constituents that are locked up in the staple; by restoring in the form of refuse as much as possible of what the soil has parted with in vegetation; and by the addition of such fertilising agents as are adapted to rectify the natural deficiencies of the soil. Thus, instead of following a process of exhaustion, the resources of the garden may be annually augmented.

ARTIFICIAL MANURES AND THEIR APPLICATION TO GARDEN CROPS

Plants, like animals, require food for their sustenance and development, and when this is administered in insufficient quantities, or unsuitable foods are supplied, they remain small, starved, and unhealthy.

The chemical elements composing the natural food of ordinary crops are ten in number, viz.—carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, sulphur, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium, and iron. These are obtained from the soil and air, and unless all of them are available plants will not grow. The absence of even one of them is as disastrous as the want of all, and a deficiency of one cannot be made up by an excess of another; for example, if the soil is deficient in potassium the crop suffers and cannot be improved by adding iron or magnesium. All the food-elements are found in adequate quantities in practically all soils and the surrounding air, except three—nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus. These are often present in reduced amount, or in a state unsuited to plants; in such cases the deficiency must be made up before remunerative healthy crops can be grown, and it is with this express object that manures are added to the soil.

One of the best known substances employed in this way is farmyard manure, which is indirectly derived from plants and contains all the elements needed for the growth of crops. It is, however, of very variable composition and rarely, or never, contains these elements in the most suitable proportions, and its value can always be greatly improved by supplementing its action with one or other of the so-called artificial manures or fertilisers. Although it is strongly advisable to add farmyard manure or vegetable composts to the soil of all gardens now and again, in order to keep the texture of the soil in a satisfactory condition, excellent crops can be grown by the use of artificial fertilisers alone. To obtain the best results from these some experience is of course necessary, but the following details regarding the nature and application of the commoner and more useful kinds should prove a serviceable guide in the majority of cases.

Artificial manures may be divided into three classes:—

1. The Nitrogenous class, of which nitrate of soda and sulphate of ammonia are examples.

2. The Phosphatic class, such as superphosphate, basic slag, and steamed bone flour.

3. The Potash class, including kainit and sulphate of potash. The several examples of each class contain only one of the three important plant food-elements, and as a single element can only be of use when the others are present in the soil, it is generally advisable to apply one from each class, either separately or mixed, in order to insure that the crop is supplied with nitrogen, phosphates, and potash.

Nitrogenous manures specially stimulate the growth of the foliage, stems, and roots of plants, and are therefore of the greatest benefit to Carrots, Parsnips, Turnips, Beet, Celery, Asparagus, Rhubarb, all the Cabbage tribe, and leafy crops generally.

_Nitrate of soda_ supplies the single plant food-element, nitrogen, and the soda for all practical purposes may be disregarded. It dissolves very easily in water and is taken up immediately by growing plants, its effect being plainly seen a few days after application. As this artificial readily drains away from uncropped land it should only be administered to growing plants. It is best applied in spring and summer and in small quantities; for example, at the rate of one pound per square rod, repeated at intervals of two or three weeks, rather than in a single large dose. Nitrate of soda must not be mixed with superphosphate, but it may be added to basic slag and the potash manures.

_Sulphate of ammonia_ is another nitrogenous fertiliser, similar in its effects to nitrate of soda, but slower in action since its nitrogen must undergo a change into nitrate before it is available for plants. It is held by the soil, and can therefore be applied earlier in spring than nitrate of soda without fear of loss. The continued use of this manure, however, is liable to make the soil sour, and consequently it should only be employed on ground containing lime, or to which lime has been added. Never mix sulphate of ammonia with basic slag or with lime, but it may be mixed with superphosphate and the potash manures.

Phosphatic manures have the opposite effect to the nitrogenous fertilisers, checking rampant growth and encouraging the early formation of flowers, fruit, and seeds. They are comparatively inexpensive and should be liberally applied to all soils for all crops. _Superphosphate_ is an acid manure and best suited for use on soils containing lime. _Basic slag_ is a better material for ground deficient in lime, or where ‘club-root’ is prevalent. It is less soluble and therefore slower in action than superphosphate. Both these fertilisers should be dug into the soil some time before the crop is planted or seed sown—superphosphate at the rate of two to three pounds per square rod; basic slag in larger amount, five to six pounds per square rod. Superphosphate may also be employed as a top-dressing and worked into the surface around growing plants with the hoe. _Steamed bone meal_ or _flour_ is another useful phosphatic fertiliser, valuable on the lighter classes of soil.

Potash manures are of benefit to plants in all stages of growth. They are particularly valuable to Potatoes, leguminous crops, Carrots, Parsnips, Turnips, and Beet. Like the phosphatic manures they should be worked into the soil before seeds are sown or plants are put out. _Kainit_ is best applied in autumn, for it contains a considerable amount of common salt and magnesium compounds which are sometimes deleterious and best washed away in the drainage water during winter. It should be dug in at the rate of about three pounds per square rod. _Sulphate of potash_ is three or four times as rich in potash as kainit, and is correspondingly more expensive; apply in spring and summer, a little in advance of sowing or planting, at the rate of about one pound per square rod.

Lime.—- A word or two must be said about lime, which is a natural constituent of all soils. In many instances there is sufficient for the needs of most plants, but where lime is deficient in quantity it must be added before healthy crops can be raised. Old gardens to which dung has been freely applied annually require a liberal dressing of lime every few years, or the ground becomes sour and incapable of growing good crops of any kind. To insure the proper action of whatever manures are used and to secure healthy crops, an application of slaked quicklime, at the rate of fourteen to twenty pounds per square rod, is strongly recommended. As a remedy against ‘clubbing’ or ‘finger-and-toe’ disease of the Cabbage tribe of plants it is indispensable; it also neutralises the baneful acidity of the land, and opens up stiff soils, making them more easily tilled, more readily penetrated by the air, and warmer by the better drainage of water through them.

The following suggestions for the manuring of the different crops mentioned will be found effective. It is, however, not intended that they should be slavishly followed, for useful substitutions may be made in the formulæ given, if the nature of the various fertilisers is understood and an intelligent grasp is obtained of the principles of manuring enunciated in this and the preceding chapter.

In place of nitrate of soda, a similar quantity of sulphate of ammonia may be used.

Instead of superphosphate, the following may be advantageously employed: phosphatic guano, or mixtures of basic slag and superphosphate, or bone meal and superphosphate; or basic slag may be applied alone on land deficient in lime.

Four pounds of kainit may also take the place of one pound of sulphate of potash in the suggested mixtures mentioned below.

Where dung is recommended, twenty to twenty-five loads per acre is meant; larger quantities are frequently applied, but these are uneconomical and much less efficient than more moderate amounts supplemented with artificial fertilisers.

All the manures should be worked into the soil before sowing or planting out, except the nitrate of soda, which is best applied separately to the growing plants, preferably in small doses at intervals of two to four weeks.

_In all cases the quantities of artificials named are intended for use on one square rod or pole of ground._

PEAS AND BEANS.—These leguminous plants are able to obtain all the nitrogen they need from the air. They should, however, be amply supplied with potash and phosphates, a good dressing being:—

2-3/4 to 3-1/2 lb. superphosphate 3/4 lb. sulphate of potash

DWARF BEANS are sometimes benefited by the addition of 1/2-lb. to 1 lb. of nitrate of soda.

ASPARAGUS.

A dressing of dung 2 lb. nitrate of soda 3-1/2 to 4 lb. superphosphate 3 lb kainit

The kainit contains a considerable amount of salt, which is of value to this crop.

BEET.—For a fine crop a moderate amount of well-decayed dung applied in autumn is almost essential, as well as 3 to 4 lb. of superphosphate per square rod in spring. On land previously dressed with dung for a former crop, the following may be used, especially on the lighter class of soils:—

1-1/2 lb. nitrate of soda when the plants are well up, and a similar amount a fortnight after singling 4 to 5 lb. superphosphate 4 lb. kainit

BROCCOLI AND CAULIFLOWER.

_With dung_. 2 to 3 lb. nitrate of soda 2 to 3 lb. superphosphate 3/4 lb. sulphate of potash

_Without dung_. 4 to 5 lb. nitrate of soda 4 to 5 lb. superphosphate 3/4 lb. sulphate of potash

CABBAGE, KALE, AND BRUSSELS SPROUTS.—These Brassicas require considerable quantities of nitrogen and phosphates. For spring Cabbage planted in autumn, land well dunged for the previous crop gives good results with the addition of the artificials mentioned below: for the autumn crop, dung should be applied before planting out in the early part of the year.

_With dung_. 2 to 3 lb. nitrate of soda 4 to 5 lb. superphosphate 3/4 lb. sulphate of potash

_Without dung._ 4 lb. nitrate of soda 5 to 6 lb. superphosphat 3/4 lb. sulphate of potash

CARROT AND PARSNIP.—A good dressing of dung applied to the previous crop is a valuable preparation where Carrots and Parsnips are to be grown. In addition, one of the following mixtures should be used:—

(1) 3/4 lb. nitrate of soda 3 to 4 lb. superphosphate 3/4 lb. sulphate of potash

(2)

3/4 lb. nitrate of soda 2 lb. superphosphate 1 to 2 lb. basic slag 3 lb. kainit

CELERY requires the use of dung more than almost any other crop, and it is little affected by artificial manures, except phosphates, which may be given in the form of superphosphate at the rate of 2-1/2 to 3-1/2 lb per square rod.

LETTUCE.

_With dung_. 3 to 4 lb. superphosphate 1/2 to 1 lb. nitrate of soda

_Without dung._ 3 to 4 lb. superphosphate 1 to 1-1/2 lb. nitrate of soda 1 lb. sulphate of potash

ONIONS never succeed without an ample supply of potash. This crop should therefore have farmyard dung, or the special potash fertilisers in adequate quantity.

_With dung._ 3/4 lb. nitrate of soda 4 to 5 lb. superphosphate 3/4 lb. sulphate of potash

_Without dung._ 1-1/2 to 2-1/2 lb. nitrate of soda 5 lb. superphosphate 1 lb. sulphate of potash

LEEKS require the same fertilisers as Onions, but will need little or no nitrate if good dung is used.

POTATO.—For good yield, high quality, and freedom from disease, Potatoes are dependent upon a good supply of potash. They do best when supplied with a moderate amount of farmyard manure, supplemented by suitable artificials, but can be grown on some soils with artificials alone.

_With dung_. 3/4 lb. sulphate of ammonia 3 lb. superphosphate 3/4 lb. sulphate of potash

_Without dung_. 1-1/2 lb. sulphate of ammonia 3-1/2 lb. superphosphate 1 to 1-1/2 lb. sulphate of potash

Instead of superphosphate, a mixture of this fertiliser with an equal amount of bone meal or basic slag may be used, and either 4 lb. of kainit and 1 lb. of muriate of potash instead of 1 lb. of sulphate of potash.

RHUBARB.—An annual dressing of dung is beneficial, together with 6 lb. of basic slag, 1 lb. of sulphate of potash, and 4 lb. of nitrate of soda, half the nitrate being applied when growth commences and the remainder a fortnight later.

SPINACH.

_With dung_. 3 to 4 lb. superphosphate 2 to 3 lb. nitrate of soda

_Without dung_ 4 to 5 lb. superphosphate 1 lb. sulphate of potash 3 to 4 lb. nitrate of soda

TOMATOES need large supplies of potash and phosphates to induce stocky growth and abundance of flowers and fruit. Nitrogenous manures should be withheld until the flowering stage, for they stimulate the production of rank succulent stems and leaves which are specially liable to attacks of fungus pests. After the fruit is set the application of small doses of nitrate of soda, or sulphate of ammonia, as advised below, greatly assists the swelling of the crop. The following mixtures worked into the soil will be found beneficial for Tomatoes:—

5 to 6 lb. superphosphate 7 to 8 lb. basic slag 1 lb. sulphate of potash _or_ 1 lb. sulphate of potash

Nitrate of soda, or sulphate of ammonia, at the rate of 1-1/2 to 2 lb. per square rod, may be given with advantage as soon as the fruit is set.

TURNIP AND SWEDE.—For the development of fine roots a liberal supply of phosphates is essential.

_With dung_. 1 lb. nitrate of soda 3 to 4 lb. superphosphate 3/4 lb. sulphate of potash

_Without dung_ 2 lb. nitrate of soda 4 to 5 lb. superphosphate 1 lb. sulphate of potash

THE CULTURE OF FLOWERS FROM SEEDS

Whether the modern demand for flowers has created the supply, or the supply has found an appreciative public, we need not stay to discuss. The fact remains that the last four or five decades have witnessed a phenomenal extension in the use of flowers by all classes of the community, for the decoration of the house no less than for beautifying the garden. Primarily, this advance of refinement in the popular taste is traceable to the skill and enthusiastic devotion of the florists who have supported in all their integrity the true canons of floral perfection, and whose labours will continue to be imperative for maintaining the standards of quality. By their severe rules of criticism the florists further the ends of floriculture subjectively, and by the actual results of their labours they render objective aid, their finest flowers serving not only as types, but as the actual stud for perpetuating each race. Hence the decline of floriculture would imply the deterioration of flowers, and the prosperity of floriculture involves progress not only in those subjects which lie within the florists’ domain, but of many others to which they have not devoted special attention. Yet the acknowledgment must be made that, brilliant as their triumphs have been, the methods they practised have in some instances entailed very severe penalties. Continuous propagation for many generations, under artificial conditions, so debilitated the constitution of Hollyhocks, Verbenas, and some other subjects, that the plants became victims of diseases which at one time threatened their existence. To save them from annihilation it was necessary to desert the worn path of propagation, and raise plants possessing the initial vigour of seedlings. In stamina these seedlings proved eminently satisfactory, although in other respects they were at first sadly disappointing. It then became clear that before show flowers could be obtained from seedlings judgment and skill must be devoted to the art of saving seed. This was necessarily a work of time, demanding great patience and rare scientific knowledge. The task was undertaken with enthusiasm in many directions, and the results have more than justified this labour of love. Formerly, the universal mode of perpetuating named Hollyhocks was by the troublesome process of cuttings, or by grafting buds on roots of seedlings in houses heated to tropical temperature. In many places it was the custom to lift the old plants, pot them, and keep them through the winter in pits. All this was found requisite to insure fine flowers. While the burden of the work was thus rendered heavy, the constitution of the plant became enfeebled, and at one time the fear was entertained that its extinction was at hand. But the new system has preserved the Hollyhock, and at the same time afforded a striking example of the principle that seed saved scientifically is found to reproduce the varieties it was taken from. Seedling Hollyhocks now give double flowers of the finest quality; and the seedling plants are less liable to disease. So with the Verbena. From suitable seed plants can be raised that will produce the most resplendent flowers, and instead of propagating a stock to keep over winter, to be stricken with mildew and cost no end of care, only to become diseased at last, a pinch of seed is sown in January or February, and soon there is a stock of healthy plants possessing the vigour peculiar to seedlings. These, being bedded out at a proper time, flower far more freely than plants from cuttings, and produce trusses twice the size.

To illustrate the change of method still further we may instance the Cineraria. Formerly this was a troublesome plant to grow, because it was considered necessary to propagate named varieties by divisions and suckers. The restricted system was reflected in limited cultivation. Few were willing to venture on a task known to be hedged about with difficulties. By degrees it was discovered that the finest Cinerarias might be secured by simply sowing seed, and giving the plants the usual cultivation of tender annuals. This has brought the Cineraria within the reach of thousands who would not attempt to grow it under the old system, and the consequent gain to society is immense.

What has been done with the Cineraria has its parallel in quite a number of the most elegant decorative flowers. Brilliant results have been achieved with Begonias, Calceolarias, Cyclamens, Gloxinias, Primulas, and Schizanthus. It has also ceased to be needful to keep such large stocks of bedding and other plants through the winter, for Ageratums, Lobelias, and Pansies have proved amenable to the new treatment, and very much of the accustomed labour in striking and potting cuttings, as well as the expense of glass, fuel, and the frequent purchase of high-priced plants, have been rendered unnecessary. Even among the flowers which are properly designated annuals, new and delightful variations have been obtained from original types. Of these we have examples in Aster, Godetia, Larkspur, Mignonette, Phlox Drummondii, Poppy, Stock, Sweet Pea, and many others. In some instances the increase in the size of the flowers is remarkable, and in others the development of new tints will surprise those who are not familiar with the labours of modern hybridisers.

Thus a revolution has been accomplished in the economy and complexion of the English Flower Garden, a revolution which has reduced and simplified the gardener’s labours, augmented the number and enhanced the beauty of many flowers, effected a marked saving in the cost of garden pleasures, and brought the culture of a large number of the most attractive subjects within the means of those who had neither the facilities nor the knowledge requisite for pursuing the florist’s methods. There appear to be no limits to further progress. All that we can do is to experiment and gather knowledge, and those who love gardening may assist in extending the area of this new and cheap system of producing some of the most elegant garden flowers in one season from seed alone.

The time and the method of sowing flower seeds must in each case be regulated by considerations as to their nature. Seeds of tender plants are usually sown in pots or pans and placed on a moderate hot-bed or in a propagating house early in spring, and in this case the plants have greenhouse cultivation until the time arrives for hardening them off preparatory to final planting. But seeds of many hardy flowers may be treated in the same way, when a long season of growth is necessary for their development. Thus Phloxes, Verbenas, and Hollyhocks, plants that differ immensely in habit and constitution, may all be sown in February, and put side by side in the same warm pit or vinery, or even in the warmest corner of any greenhouse, and the very same treatment will suit them equally well. The soil should be principally loam and sand, with a little old thoroughly well-rotted manure from a hot-bed or compost heap; and light, air, and moisture must be regulated with a view to insure a free and vigorous growth from the first, with the least possible amount of artificial heat. In some cases, however, the sowing should be deferred to March or April, and the result will be far more satisfactory than the growth made under the stimulus of artificial heat earlier in the season. But in every case the plants must have sufficient time; for although the rapid system has been developed, the constitution of the plants remains unchanged, and those which have heretofore been classed as biennials and perennials need a long season when treated as annuals.

A considerable proportion of the finest flowers may be raised from seed by the aid of a frame and a little careful management. We will take as an example a very restricted garden. Here is a small frame and some packets of seed, and the month of February or March has arrived. The pans and pots are made ready with sweet sandy compost, and the seeds are sown and labelled, and the pans and pots are packed together in the frame on a bed of clean coal ashes, or some slates, or tiles, or bricks laid on the soil, to promote warmth and cleanliness and to prevent the intrusion of worms among the seeds. By simple management almost as quick a growth of seeds can be insured in this frame as with the aid of a hot-bed, and the secret consists in careful storage of the heat of the sun. Lay over the seed-pans sheets of glass to prevent evaporation, and let the sun shine full upon them. Be careful as to moisture: they must never be wet, never dry, and the water must not be slopped about carelessly. It is a good rule to immerse the pots or pans in a vessel containing soft water, slightly tepid. When the seedlings begin to appear, give a little air and lay sheets of paper tenderly over them during the hour or two at midday when the sun may be shining brightly. But keep them from the first as ‘hard’ as possible with plenty of light and air, always taking care that they are neither roasted, nor blown away by the cruel east wind, nor nipped at night by a killing frost. A few old mats or light loppings of trees laid over the frame from sundown to sunrise will be sufficient protection at those trying times; and when spring frosts are making havoc with the tender sprouting leaf and bloom in every part of the garden those little things will be safe under their glass cover, and slight experience will show that a common frame may become a miniature hot-house in the hands of one who has learned to make failure the stepping-stone to success. We must not omit to mention that the owner of such a garden, or, indeed, of any garden, will be prudent to take advantage of the first fine weather to sow in the open ground whatever flower or vegetable seeds should be sown at that season. The frame garden can be reserved, if needful, for wet weather, because it is of the utmost importance to sow a good breadth of seeds in the open ground as early as possible in the month of March.

Turning from this small example to the great garden, it will be obvious that to those who always have heavy work on hand the advantages of this transference, of labour from the old system to the new are immense. Both to employers and gardeners the advantages are of importance; the propagation of bedders by cuttings, and of florists’ flowers by suckers and divisions and layers and pipings, will not, of course, be completely abolished; but for all ordinary purposes the ends in view may be accomplished more simply, more expeditiously, and more cheaply than heretofore. The pits hitherto appropriated to bedders, and the like, may to a great extent be liberated, and there will be no difficulty in finding for them more profitable occupants. While Mushrooms and early Potatoes and winter salads are in request, it will be a gain to many a garden to have reduced the summer display of flowers to a simple system of seed-sowing, at an expense that may be described as merely nominal.

Before dealing specifically with certain flowers, it may be advisable to say a few words generally concerning the culture of Annuals—Hardy, Half-hardy, and Tender—and also on hardy Biennials and Perennials.

Annuals.—Although the most popular kinds of annuals are largely employed in the embellishment of flower gardens, they are adapted for many uses to which they may with advantage be more frequently applied. A few misconceptions prevail as to the relative merits of this class of plants. By some they are regarded as ‘weedy’ and ‘short-lived.’ Their very cheapness, and the relatively small amount of skill required in their cultivation, tend in some degree to detract from their value in public estimation. We will not be so rash as to say that a more extended use of annuals would render unnecessary the cultivation of what are especially known as ‘bedding plants’; but there is something to be said on behalf of annuals that may be worth the consideration of all who are interested in the development of freshness, variety, and richness of colour in the flower garden. In the first place, these plants come into flower within a comparatively short period of time from the sowing of the seed, and it is a matter of considerable importance that a large proportion of the best continue beautiful until the very close of the season. Sometimes in the autumn Geraniums become literally washed out, while Tom Thumb Nasturtiums may be ablaze with colour, and continue so when the Geraniums are housed for the winter. A large number of showy and long-lasting annuals are adapted for employment in bedding, and by a little management those that do not last the season out may be replaced by others for succession; thus affording the advantage of increased variety, and making no demand for glass and fuel to keep them through the winter as do the ordinary bedders. We have had great and glorious sheets of Candytufts, snow-white, rich crimson, and bright carmine; and when they began to wane they were removed, and the ground planted with Asters, and very soon there was another display, so fresh and bright and various that no greenhouse bedders could surpass them. Great hungry banks, that would have swallowed many pounds’ worth of greenhouse plants to cover them, have been made delightfully gay at a very trifling cost by sowing upon them Tropæolums, Tom Thumb Nasturtiums, _Bartonia aurea_, the dwarf varieties of _Lupinus_, Virginian Stock, _Collinsia bicolor_, Convolvuluses, Candytufts, Eschscholtzias, Poppies, and Clarkias; and damp, half-shady borders have been delicately tessellated by means of Forget-me-nots, Venus’ Looking-glass, Pansies, the Rosy Oxalis, Nemophilas, Godetias, Silenes, Coreopsis, and Scabious.

For the more important positions in the flower garden we have choice of many really sumptuous subjects, such as Stocks, Asters, Balsams, Drummond’s Phlox, Lobelias, the lovely new varieties of Antirrhinums, Dianthus, Portulacas, Zinnias, tall Stock-flowered Larkspurs, Nemesias, and many other flowers equally beautiful and lasting. We do not hope by these brief remarks to change the prevailing fashion—indeed, we have no particular wish that way—but we feel bound to observe that it is sufficient for the beauty of the garden that the greenhouse bedders should be confined to the parterre proper. It is waste of space and opportunity to place them in the borders everywhere, as is too commonly done. In sunny borders, annual and perennial herbaceous plants are far more appropriate.