THE VEGETABLE GARDEN. 69 it breaks hard it is too dry. For plowing it should crumble easily and finely and leave very little dirt on the hands.
Fertilizers.— There is no rule for the selection of fer- tilizers. It is very largely a matter of experience. Most soils are benefited by the addition of humus, a name applied to any thoroughly rotted vegetable or animal matter. The presence of humus may be determined by burning a small quantity of soil on a red hot shovel; if it gives an odor of feathers it contains humus from animal matter; if the odor of straw it contains humus from vegetable matter. Leaves, garden refuse and barnyard manure made into a compost and allowed to decay make good humus.
Seeds.— Seeds should be ready by the time the ground is prepared. It is important to have good seed and it is usually considered safe to send to some reputable dealer and depend upon him for quality.
Planting from the Hotbed.— Many vegetables, as toma- toes, and cabbage, may be started in hotbeds and the plants reset, such plants can usually be purchased of seed dealers,.
and enough for a small family may be started in a good- sized box of earth in a south window.
The hotbed and cold frame are easily made, all that is.
necessary being bottom heat, protection on al] sides and a sash of glass as a cover. A pit is made for the hotbed 1 to 3 feet deep, then an inch or two stuff on the »ottom and on this 18 inchee to 3 feet of manure is placed; next comes a layer of leaf ould and on top 4 or 5 inches of garden loam. A hotbed with 2 feet of manure in may be expected to be good for 6 weeks. The frame faces the south and is 6 to 8 inches higher at the back than at the front.
A cold frame is about the same as the top part of a hot- bed. No bottom hole is necessary and it is used for start- ing plants in early spring and receiving partially hardened plants which have been started earlier; it is also used for wintering young cabbages, lettuce and other plants.
Planting.— The time for the first planting in any locality is known only by experience. The following natural signs may sometimes govern the time of planting the vegetables named: The bloom of the peach denotes planting time for peas, spinach and onions; when the oak leaf breaks from its bud plant beets, turnips, corn and tomatoes; when the blackberries blossom, beans, cucumbers, cantaloupes, water- melons, squash and okra are to be planted.
The garden should be planted so as to allow cultivation
70 THE FARMER’S ENCYCLOPEDIA,
wherever possible by plowing. Wheel tools may be used where this cannot well be done. Hand weeding should be reduced to a minimum, the rows being made long and con- tinuous for this purpose. If one kind of vegetable 1 to make a long row is not wanted, several kinds may be put in the same row. For marking the rows for planting various devices have been used. A roller made from a smooth hardwood log with heavy ropes fastened firmly about at distances corresponding to the intervals wished between the rows may be used as a marker. When the plants or seeds are to be put in at intervals the place may be marked by knots in the ropes.
Soil— The soil should be moist when seed is put in.
If the planting is done just before a rain, it must be seen that packing of the soil over the seed does not prevent it from coming up. Most seeds are sown more thickly than the plants are desired, being thinned out as soon as the first true leaves appear, care being taken not to loosen the roots of the remaining plants.
Depth of Planting— The depth depends upon the size of the seeds, habits of germination, early growth, the soil and the season of planting. Small weak seeds should have much less cover than large vigorous ones, while certain seeds (as celery) must be lightly pressed into the soil and have a little sand or dust scattered over them.
Transplanting.— Soon after the plants form the first true leaves they should be transplanted from the hotbed or eold frame. They should be closely pressed about the roots, end if the sun comes upon them they should be shaded with a screen of some kind. It is customary to clip back the leaves of young plants about half way from the point so as to give them better chance to root in the soil.
Rotation should be practiced in the garden, being g as iin:
portant there as in the field. } Ba
Cultivation.— The two principal reasons for cultivation, are: (1) to Keep. down the weeds and (2) to ieee in he soil a faba of air and moisture necessary for thes eg i
&
aim in making a mulch is to save the oistilte cai from the lower earth and send it to his Pactieed iin are
Irrigation.— Irrigation should be practiced, he inde et a is a long spell of dry weather. The garde (ay fol ra arranged. that it can be reached with a host’ J ia trough. The best time for watering is in thé pa fit the