132 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



feet apart. It hills them slightly, or leaves the drill slightly 

 raised. They are then treated with the cultivator after the 

 weeds begin to spring up, and trimmed up by hand with the 

 hoe. 



Mr. Hadwen. I do not believe that I can either instruct 

 or entertain this meeting with any remarks in regard to the 

 growth of garden vegetables, it is so long since I have pur- 

 sued the business of market-gardening ; but I know very 

 well the importance of beets, corn and squashes ; I know 

 they are important to the whole community. 



As to the cultivation of beets, my course has been, in the 

 first place, to take old and well cultivated land, free from 

 stones and from anything that will obstruct the growth of the 

 vegetable, and after giving it a good dressing, if I attempted 

 to grow them on a large scale, I should grow them in rows 

 twenty-two inches apart. That would enable me to pursue 

 their after-cultivation with the horse, which of course would 

 economize the labor of their production. In growing the 

 beet, the seed should be soaked twenty-four or thirty-six 

 hours previous to planting. That gives the seed the power 

 of germinating and coming forward in advance of the weeds. 

 It is very important in the growth of garden vegetables to 

 have them come up and grow to sufilcieut size to hoe before 

 the weeds come forward. Whoever lets the weeds get the 

 start of any vegetable, gets into great difficulty and very 

 great expense. There is no difficulty in the after-growth of 

 the beet, if it is well manured and well cared for. The main 

 point is in thinning, and thinning at the proper time. Thin 

 about the time the beet is making its sixth leaf. That is of 

 great importance. If thinned at the proper time, there is no 

 check to the growth of the root. If delayed, they will lap 

 over, and there is a loss. Nobody who grows beets, or any 

 vegetable, can aflford the loss of the crop in any season. 



In the cultivation of squashes, which we know is a very 

 important and desirable vegetable, my manner is to take 

 sward ground (if you choose, you may take ground that has 

 had one crop the previous season) , plough in a good dressing 

 of manure, make the rows eight feet apart each way, dig out 

 holes sufficient to hold three good shovelfuls of well decom- 

 posed and rotted manure, and put it into those holes. Then 



