THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 185 



SEASONABLE TVOEK IN" THE KITCHEN GAEDEN. 



EY GEOEGE GRAY, 

 Head Gardener, Ewell Castle, Surrey. 



jLTHOUGH all the summer crops are planted or sown 

 according to their character, and the ground covered, 

 there is plenty of work to be done in the kitchen- 

 garden, and there must be no slackening in the efforts 

 to keep well ahead of the work, or it will soon overpass 

 the cultivator. 



AVeeds are now growing with amazing rapidity everywhere, and 

 the hoe must be kept busy at work to keep them down, and prevent 

 them seeding, and laying the foundation of a second crop. AVhen 

 they are allowed to seed, immense crops will be produced in the 

 autumn, when, owing to the decrease in the power of the sun, and 

 the increase in the rainfall, it is very difficult to destroy them. 

 Hoeing the ground between growing crops is of advantage in other 

 ways than in destroying the weeds, for it loosens the surface soil, 

 checks evaporation, and enables the rains to soak down to the roots 

 of the crops more readily than is possible when the surface has 

 become hard. Dry bright days should be taken advantage of for 

 hoeing, as the work can be done with less trouble, the weeds destroyed 

 more effectually, and the ground left in a better state. As the hoe 

 can be run through the soil, just as a crop of weeds is making its 

 appearance, with about half the labour involved in chopping up 

 strongly-established weeds, it is always best to set the hoe to work 

 immediately the weeds are making their appearance. 



The planting of marrows, gourds, cucumbers, and tomatoes must 

 be completed early in the month, or the season w'ill be gone before 

 the plants will arrive at a bearing state. The tomatoes must be 

 planted in a warm, sunny position ; for like the potato, to which 

 they are closely allied, they do but little good without plenty of 

 heat and sunshine. They succeed the most satisfactorily against a 

 wall or close fence, but on warm soils good crops may be obtained 

 from the open quarters, provided the season happens to be favour- 

 able. The marrows and gourds al^o like plenty of sunshine, and a 

 liberally manured soil, but they are not very particular, and good 

 crops may be obtained from plants put out in an open position, and 

 in ordinary good soils. It is quite unnecessary to plant them on 

 heaps of manure, as is so frequently done, but there is no objection 

 to the practice, provided the manure is plentiful. Seed of these two 

 vegetables, sown in the open border at once, will quickly germinate, 

 and the plants so raised will produce good crops, althougli the first 

 fruit ready for the table will be later than that obtained from plants 

 raised from seed sown in the frames. I mention this for the 

 information of those who, from any cause, have no stock available 

 for planting out, and also to show that if the frame-room is limited, 

 good crops may be obtained without occupying any of the room 

 under glass in the preparation of the plants. 



June, 



