Sweet Peas. 219 



begin to bloom, at which time all cultivation should cease. I do 

 not believe that this is safe advice. The land becomes hard by 

 constant tramping of visitors when the plants are in bloom, and 

 the evaporation from the soil is thereby greatly increased. A 

 heavy mnlch of straw or litter may be placed on the soil when the 

 plants begin to bloom, to conserve the moisture; but if the rows 

 are far enough apart to allow of it, a frequent stirring of the soil all 

 through the season with a horse or hiand cultivator will be found 

 to be the most efficient conservator of moisture. The plants also 

 endure dry weather better when thinly planted. We like to have 

 the plants six or seven inches apart in the row. Our own test in 

 1895 comprised four rows each 150 feet long, and three feet asun- 

 der, in heavy clay loam. The vines were trained on five horizon- 

 tal wires, making a trellis three or four feet high. The land was 

 stirred with a horse and cultivator about eveiy week all summer 

 long. The result was, that although we had a prolonged drought, 

 we had sweet peas in abundance from early July until October. 



Deep planting also enables the sweet pea to resist dry weather. 

 It is a good plan to make furrows four or six inches deep, drop 

 the peas in the bottom and cover an inch or so. Then, as the 

 plants grow, the earth is gradually filled in about the plants, until 

 the furrow is full. If there is danger that these furrows will fill 

 with water, and hold it for some time, the peas should be 

 planted more shallow and the furrows filled at once. Early 

 planting is also desirable. In this latitude we can plant as early 

 as the first of April, on warm soil, — that is, a month before hard 

 frosts have ceased. The sweet pea is a hardy plant, and the seed 

 is not injured by much cold weather. I have known good results 

 from planting seeds in the fall, but this practice is unreliable in 

 the northern states. I doubt if it can be recommended with full 

 confidence north of Norfolk. But even if the seeds are got in late 

 and shallow, the plants' may be carried through by a little extra 

 attention to tillage. Our test of 1S95, of which I have spoken, 

 was inaugurated so late that we thought it inadvisable to delay 

 matters by deep planting. So we planted the seed about two to 

 three inches deep, on the last day of April, and our sweet peas 

 were tlie admiration of the community. If there are any secrets in 

 the growing of sweet peas, they are these : A rich, well-prepared 



