140 



THE GARDENER'S MONTHLY 



[May, 



ficial ; but a fair trial, say on every otlier row of 

 a bed of cabbages, will show a great difTereiice in 

 favor of the earthed-up plants. It would be 

 easy to explain the reason of this, but in this 

 column we try to confine ourselves to "hints," 

 and leave reasons to our other departments. 



Cabbage, Cauliflower and BrocoH are now set 

 out for fall crops, and Endive sown for winter 

 salad. Lettuce also for summer and fall use. 

 This, however, must be sown in very rich soil 

 and in a partially shaded situation, or it will go 

 to seed. Peas, beans, and other crops should be 

 sowed every two weeks. They do much better 

 than when a large crop is sown at one time, and 

 then have too many on at one time to waste. 



Melons, cucumbens, corn, okra, squash, beans, 

 Bweet potatoes, Lima beans, pepper, egg-plants 

 tomatoes, and other tender vegetables that do 

 well till the sun gets high, and the ground warm, 

 should go into the soil without delay. 



Bean poles should be set before the beans are 

 planted; and near cities where they are com- 

 paratively high priced, their ends should be 

 charred. This will make them last some years. 

 Try also short stout poles for cucumbers and 

 tomatoes. They do remarkably well this way. 



COMMUNICA TIONS. 



MUSHROOMS. 



BY PETER HENDERSON. 



In reply to "Subscriber," in the March num- 

 ber, who complains that in my work, "Garden- 

 ing for Profit," I omit to say how to " cut," 

 " pack," and " sell " the product of his mushroom 

 bed that my instructions have enabled him to 

 obtain. Though these instructions do not neces- 

 sarily belong, I think, to such a work, no more 

 than the telling of " how to catch a hare " should 

 be followed by the information of how to cook 

 it, yet I will endeavor to help him. In most 

 cases when mushrooms come up thickly in 

 clumps or clusters, they are best gathered by 

 twisting off" carefully, so as not to injure those 

 not yet fit to gather; but when that cannot be 

 done without injury, they may be cut as aspar- 

 agus, by slipping them off with a knife below the 

 surface. In packing, the same rules apply to 

 them as in anything else, that is, use the size of 

 the package according to the season of the year. 



In February or March, a package holding a 

 bushel may be used, while in May or June, 

 when the temperature is higher, the package 

 should not be more than one-fourth, or one-sixth 

 of that size ; for the reason that a larger package 

 would then heat. In all cases be sure that the 

 package is filled full, so that its contents will not 

 shake or jolt. About "selling," much will de- 

 pend upon where " Subscriber " is located. If in 

 the vicinity of any of our large cities, the princi- 

 pal hotels will be the purchasers. There is not 

 yet demand enough for mushrooms in our com- 

 mon markets to command prices high enough 

 to justify their culture, though the prices paid by 

 the first-class hotels and restaurants in New 

 York are such as I believe pay well. A gentle- 

 man called on me the other day from Canada, 

 who informed me he had some 10,000 square 

 feet of cellar .space, which he had for three years 

 devoted to the forcing of mushrooms and rhu- 

 barb, all of which he sold in the New York 

 hotels at renmnerative prices. Your correspon- 

 dent states that he has a small bed. He will find 

 that he will have more difficulty in selling his 

 mushrooms, or anything else, than if he had 

 enough to sustain a regular supply to the pur- 

 chaser. All articles of a perishable nature that 

 are products of the garden or greenhouse, we 

 find are always sold to better advantage when 

 the supply is regular. Our large growers of cut 

 flowers, for cxamjile, in the vicinity of New 

 York, Avho have enough to send in daily to their 

 customers, realize at least one-third more than 

 those who can only send in occasionally; and 

 such as a general thing is equally true of fresh 

 fruits or vegetables. 



BILYEU'S COMET PEACH. 



BY RANDOLPH PETERS. 



In December number of Gardener's Monthly, 

 p. 3G8, your correspondent, D. O. Munson, Esq., 

 of Fall's Church, Va., saj's, "I send you by ex- 

 press some peaches which have been sent to 

 the Washington market for two or three years, 

 under the name of Comet, from the eastern 

 shore of Maryland. This fruit brings from 

 $4 to $-5 per bushel. You describe this peach 

 as a white flesh peach. Again I find in Jan- 

 uary number, 1876, pages 14 and 27 same 

 number, two more communications from same 

 correspondent. On page 14 he says, " I send you 



