Raising Vegetables for Canning 1577 



at the rate of about five hundred to one thousand pounds per acre, ac- 

 cording to the richness of the soil. For soils poorer .he average, 

 a 4-8-10 fertilizer applied at about the same rate is recommended. In 

 some localities, fertilizer containing two pcT cent nitrogen, ten per cent 

 phosphoric acid, and six per cent potash has produced good resTilts. A 

 good formula to use in mixing this type of fertilizer at home is : one hundred 

 and thirty pounds nitrate of soda, tw"o htmdred and fifty pounds high- 

 grade tankage, or one hundred and :. /junds dried blood, fourteen 

 hundred and thirty pounds acid phosphate, and two hvmdred and fifty 

 pounds sulfate of potash. In case the plants are small and seemingly 

 backward, if part of the fertilizer is applied in the hills, it quickeiLs growth 

 and has a tendency to promote early maturity of the crop. If soil con- 

 ditions are right, and the plants are thrifty, it makes but little difference 

 whether the fertilizer is applied in the hills or broadcasted. 



Varieties. — Many varieties, some of which are of questionable value 

 as far as canning is concerned, are listed by the seedsmen. The following 

 varieties are recommended: for the early crops, Bonny Best and Chalk's 

 Early Jewel; for the midseason crop. Trucker's Favorite, Success, My 

 Mar>'land, Greater Baltimore, and Globe; for the late crop, Ponderosa 

 and Stone. The following small-fruited varieties are recommended for 

 preserving: Yellow Plum, Red Plum, Yellow Pear, Red Pear, Peach, 

 Yellow Cherry, Red Cherry, Red Currant, Yellow Ctirrant, and Straw- 

 berry, or Husk — all of which, except the last, somewhat resemble the fruits 

 of the same name. The fruit of the last-named variety is a small berry 

 enclosed in a husk. Many seedsmen offer other sorts than those listed 

 here, and some of them are results of work on the part of the seedsmen 

 to develop something better than the original varieties. In tests carried 

 on at one or two of the experiment stations, it has been found that seed 

 of one variety bought from different seedsmen may vary so much that 

 there will be a difference of two or three tons per acre in the yields. Seed 

 bought from the firms that specialized in a certain va-' *• produced the 

 highest 5'ields. Tests of the comparative yields of ^....rent varieties 

 have been made, and, at the Illinois Experiment Station, Greater Balti- 

 more was shown to be the heaviest yielding tomato. 



Time and methods of planting. — Good plants may often be bought if 

 there is a grower of tomato plants in the community. The price for 

 these plants will var\^ from ten to twenty-five cents a dozen, or from a 

 dollar and a half to eight or ten dollars per thousand, according to the 

 character of the plants and the variety. When purchasing plants, the 

 color and the shape should be taken into consideration. The stem of the 

 plant and the top leaves should be tinged with purple, not a yellowish 

 green, Vjecause a purplish tinge denotes that the plant has hardened and 



