Title: Vegetable gardening. A manual on the growing of vegetables for home use and marketing
Abstract: This difference will frequently amount to one crop a year where 6 VEGETABLE GARDENING.the soil is closely tilled.The soil on a southern slope can be worked much earlier in the spring-than that having a northern exposure, and often by proper management two crops may be grown in one year in such places, while on a northern slope perhaps only one crop could be raised.Then again, such crops as melons and tomatoes that require a long season and a warm location to mature could do so on a southern slope, while on a northern slope they might not ripen.Location and Soil for Early Crops.-When the object in vegetable gardening is to grow very early crops, it is im- portant to have quick-acting land.Such a soil contains a large amount of sand in its composition.Soils of this class warm up very quickly, and decomposition goes on very rapidly in them.They give the quickest returns from manures.If such land has a southern slope and, in addition, is protected from the north and west winds, the situation will be an ideal one for the early vegetable garden and for tropical plants, such as tomatoes, beans, corn, etc. of water may be controlled by lifting" it less than thirty feet.In such places windmills may be successfully used for pumping the water, providing reservoirs of large capacity can be cheaply made into which water may be pumped the year around, to be used as needed.Thresher engines, which are seldom used except in the late summer and fall, may some- times be used to advantage for pumpingwater for crops and often at very low cost.Gasoline engines are occasionally used in some irrigation works.They are very desirable, but at present the price is too high to warrant their general use.In putting in a pumping plant, the pump should be put as near the water supply as possible.Reservoirs should be on some elevated point.They are easily made by digging out the earth and puddling the bottom and sides with thick clay, which should be at least one foot in thickness and well packed when wet.A good way to pack it is to drive horses over it.When clay cannot be obtained the bottom may be made tight with a thin coat- ing of coal tar and sand, but clay is preferable, and what is known as blue clay is generally best.Cement is liable to crack badly from frost and is not adapted to this purpose.Made in this way, reservoirs are very cheap and easily re- paired.It is important to have them very large where the supply of water is limited: where the supply is large, the reservior may be much smaller.Application of Water.-Sloping land is necessary for most successful irrigation, as it is very difficult to apply water to the surface of level land.The slope should be sufficient to permit the water to flow quickly along its surface and yet not enough to cause it to wash.For irrigation purposes the rows should not be over 300 feet long.The best results are gener- ally obtained from irrigating soils having considerable sand in their composition.Drifting sands may often be made to produce good crops by irrigation and manuring, and lands having some sand in their composition are much better adapted to irrigation than clay soils, since the latter often bake badly or become sticky so that they cannot be cultivated immediately after applying water to them.Rules for Applying Water to Land.-Water should not be ap- plied unless the crop is suffering for it, but cultivate the soil 10 VEGETABLE GARDENING.thoroughly and frequently, and thus watering may be avoided.Cultivate at once after irrigating, if the land will per- mit of it, so that the soil will not bake; evaporation will thus be prevented, and water will be saved in the soil.Do not apply more than enough water to nicely moisten the land and avoid getting it water-soaked.Do not think that irrigation will take the place of cultivation, for it will not, since without cultivation irrigation is seldom successful.Water for irrigating purposes should be somewhat warm when applied.Cold springs do not afford a satisfactory supply for some crops unless first pumped into a reservoir.A temperature of 60 degrees is desirable, though not always necessary for the best results.Aim to wet the roots of the plants and avoid getting water on the leaves.Wooden troughs afford the cheapest conduits for water and should be used whenever practicable.Iron pipe is expen- sive and much more difficult to manage-than wooden troughs.Figure 1.-Method of irrigating crop planted in rows.Sub-irrigation is a new term that refers to the application of water to the roots of plants by means of underground chan- VEGETABLE GARDENING.Composition of Vegetables 4-{Continued.)