822 



THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE OF AMERICA. 



its up-to-date walks and driveways, grass borders, formal 

 garden, and magnificent flower garden it rises in southern 

 Illinois like a beacon of light. There was just completer 

 this fall a new vegetable garden, surrounded by a con- 

 crete wall over-topped at each corner and entrance with 

 imported Italian statuary. This garden is divided into 

 four great sections. Mr. Shield expects to add some new 

 houses to his already large area of glass in the near 

 future. The large house, which is shown here, faces a 

 large, natural lake which has been made suitable for 

 bathing and sailing. Around the edges of this lake are 

 beautiful clinging, hardy alpine plants. The marble 

 plaza on the approach to the main entrance of the hou^e 

 is bordered on either side with peculiar Japanese ever- 

 green shrubs, shaped after various animals and birds. 



T. B. C. 



v:ew of .m.lertox est.\te, moxticello. ill., from lake. 



Essentials in Vegetable Culture 



By Alfred Walker. 



Vegetable growing on the pri\ate estate rctjuires 

 much thought and plaiming to enable us to supply the 

 household with fresh and tender vegetables throughout 

 the season. 



The large scope of this subject prevents me from 

 going deeply into the details, therefore I can only gen- 

 eralize and try to bring out the essential things to be 

 done, so we will first of all presume the garden is es- 

 tablished and has been cropped. This will eliminate 

 trying to tell you how to select a location and prepare 

 the same, although I might say the selection of a suit- 

 able spot is too often given secondary consideration, 

 and therefore becomes a handicap to the gardener 

 ever after. 



After the crops are oft' I plough wherever I can and 

 leave in rough state. This insures an easily worked 

 and more friable condition in spring. During winter I 

 prepare a good pile of stable manure by turning it fre- 

 quently, and also look after the tools, labels, baskets 

 and everything likely to be needed. Next we must 

 gi\e our attention to selection of seed which is of vital 

 importance, as much of our success depends not only 

 on the germative quality but on the varieties best suit- 

 ed to our locality. The leading seedmen are vying 

 with each other to obtain the best and truest type of 

 stock, and if we first find out what varieties do well in 

 our locality and obtain our stock of seed from a reliable 

 firn^ we <;hall be another step nearer our goal. Trust 

 30ur main crop supply to the standard varieties until 

 you have proved by testing the superiority of some 

 other newer kind. Use the novelties more for the 

 pleasure of experimenting rather than their worth. A 

 novelty always creates an interest and excites our ex- 

 pectation and should be used for this purpose alone. 

 Try to grow many dififerent kinds of vegetables; this 

 enables one to substitute in any emergency, such as 

 seed failure, ripening or mistiming of growing period. 

 Don't think you can eliminate anything because the 

 cook did not use it. They are apt to be fickle minded 

 and are of imcertain retainative qualities. 



Prc[)aring for planting. — In order to make myself 

 more clearly understood I must carry y^ou back to the 

 rudiments of our profession and try to explain how a 

 plant grows; that is, by the aid of air, light, warmth, 

 food and water. 



Much has been said and written about this matter, 

 and yet we are in a measure all at sea. We know some 

 kinds of plants do better in light or heavy soil or muck ; 



we know the chief food elements are nitrogen, phos- 

 phorus and potassium ; but how to give these things to 

 the plant in the proper way is a question we are con- 

 tinually trying to solve. We know nitrogen increases 

 the leafage and is therefore good for such plants as let- 

 tuce, asparagus, spinach, etc. Potassium is good for 

 fruiting plants and potatoes, while phosphorus makes 

 the plants vigorous and hardy, especially in their early 

 stages. Aside from these three elements, which are 

 chiefly lacking in the garden, the plants need lime, mag- 

 nesium and iron. In fact, there are thirteen elements 

 used by plants, most of which are always present in the 

 soil. Now, an element is one thing that cannot be di- 

 vided, but these elements are ahvays used by plants as 

 compounds, and the chief nitrogen compounds are nitric 

 acid, ammonia, sulphate of ammonia, nitrate of potassium 

 and nitrate of soda. Of phosphorus the chief com- 

 pound is calcium phosphate. The chief potassium com- 

 pound is nitrate of potassium, sodium nitrate, potas- 

 sium chlorid and sulphate and muriate of potash. All 

 these compounds e.xcept ammonia and nitric acid are 

 salts, and may be found in solution in the soil water. 

 The most important enrichment for the soil is manure. 

 It contains all three of these plant foods, and also bene- 

 fits the land by improving its texture. But to enable 

 the plant to use this food the manure must go through 

 a process of decay, causing nitrates to form. These 

 nitrate^ being soluble are taken in as food by the water 

 through the root, the water passing off through the leaves. 

 By this process the plant uses great quantities of water. 



It has been estimated by scientists that it requires 

 from 350 to 500 pounds of water to pass through plants 

 yielding one pound of grain. You will understand by 

 this the great necessity of trying to make the soil a 

 storage place for water without shutting out the air 

 and warmth so essential. Therefore always aim to dig 

 or plough deep and thoroughly incorporate the manure, 

 making the soil as friable as possible. This insures a 

 larger feeding ground, consequently a more vigorous 

 root action. 



In spring, when the ground is warmed and dry 

 enough to crumble, first spread about 25 or 30 ton of 

 good rotten manure to the acre and dig or plough, 

 trying to thoroughly incorporate the manure. If quick 

 growing seed is to be planted I broadcast a light dress- 

 ing of some commercial fertilizer and rake it in. I pre- 

 fer to plant as soon as dug or just after a rain in spring 

 and before a rain in summer. When planting I use a 



