144 • BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



vegetables. If you propose to raise a handsome crop of carrots, 

 parsnips, or any other long-rooted vegetable, it cannot be done 

 on clay soil ; it must be done on sandy loam, or soil of that 

 nature ; while cabbages and cauliflowers would grow better on 

 clay soils. The first thing in growing vegetables is the prep- 

 aration of the soil ; that is a very important matter. In the 

 first place, the soil must be deep ; it must be well drained, and 

 it must be so thoroughly harrowed and stirred as to reduce it 

 to a fine tilth, otherwise you cannot raise smooth roots ; it is 

 impossible, with lumps in the ground, to raise smooth roots. 

 Then it must also have high manuring. Farmers are not aware 

 what market gardeners mean by high manuring. A friend of 

 mine, who is a market gardener, who cultivates only ten acres 

 of land, uses two hundred and fifty cords on that ten acres. 

 Of course some of it goes into his hot-beds ; but that would 

 frighten an ordinary farmer. I do not know where to get so 

 much manure as that ; I get all I can, and make it go as far as 

 I can. 



To grow vegetables as they grow them in the vicinity of 

 Boston, you must have an abundance of manure. Not chem- 

 ical manure ; I doubt if you could grow vegetables with any 

 of the preparations that Dr. Nichols could give you. I should 

 not dare to try it, with any of them. Although I have dis- 

 solved a great deal of bone in sulphuric acid, and formed what 

 I called superphosphate, and found a good effect from it, yet I 

 have only used that in addition to the other fertilizers. 



After the preparation of the ground, and having the soil 

 highly manured, then you come to the seed. Now, farmers 

 do not understand that matter as market gardeners understand 

 it. The difference between good seed and bad seed is the dif- 

 ference of all their profits. No one who uses poor seed can 

 raise good vegetables. As friend Hyde says, good seed is of 

 the first importance ; without it, you cannot raise good vege- 

 tables. In the growing of vegetables as food for cattle, a little 

 coarseness might be allowed, be§ause, as friend Hyde says, bulk 

 is of more importance than smoothness; but in raising vege- 

 tables for the market, it is necessary that the seed shall be of 

 those varieties that will grow a smooth root. Much of the 

 cauliflower seed that is sold is worse than worthless, for if you 

 manage to get plants above ground, and have a poor crop, that 



