52 



IRISH GARDENING. 



a surplus of fruit, should turn their attention to 

 this subject, and I am sure they will 1)l' 

 delighted with results. In sterilizing we have 

 two objects in view — excluding air and killing 

 any bacteria that adhere to the fruit. Heat is 

 the main factor in this respect, and by gradu- 

 ally raising the temperature of the water in the 

 sterilizer till it reaches 150° Far., and keeping 

 it at that for not less than half-an-hour, will 

 kill any bacteria in the bottles, drive out the 

 air, and when the bottles are cold they become 

 hermetically sealed, and the fruit will keep for 

 any length of time. The appliances consist of 

 an oil stove, sterilizer, a few bottles, and a> 

 dairy thermometer. A large pot may be used 

 in i^lace of a sterilizer, and it should be deep 

 enough to cover the bottles to the neck, and 

 they must then be placed under and between 

 the bottles to keep them from breaking. Much 

 time and trouble will be saved if a sterilizer 

 be used, as it has a stand for the bottles which 

 fits inside the sterilizer. Any class of bottle on 

 the market that is sold for this purpose \y\\\ 

 be found suitable, as each in turn is 

 e([ual to the preservation of the fruit therein. 

 The same bottles may be used each season, 

 only renewing the rubber rings, which cannot be 

 well used again, as the continuous pressure 

 when in use expands the rubber. In bottling 

 small green gooseberries and ciu-rants, the 

 stalks only need be removed, leaving on the 

 calyces saves much time, and does not spoil 

 the appearance of the fruit. 



In bottling green gooseberries, the fruit 

 should be graded, and if any insecticides have 

 been used the berries should be washed, and 

 allowed to dry before bottling. The bottles 

 must first be washed in hot water, and allowed 

 to dry ; the rubber rings placed in warm water, 

 to which a little washing-soda has been added ; 

 then into cold water till required. The fruit 

 may be gathered any time during the day when 

 the weather is fine, selecting fruits that are ou 

 the unripe side. Eipe fruit can be bottled with 

 success if handled with care, and less sugar will 

 be required when the contents of the bottles 

 are used. The strawberry is the only difficidt 

 fruit to bottle; the hemes, being lighter than 

 water, float after sterilization, and it must be 

 ai fine art to bottle this fruit with any great 

 success. The fruit should be packed into the 

 bottles to within half-an-inch of the top. Use 

 a glass rod or piece of stick to pack the fruit 

 firmly, but be carefvd not to damage the fruit. 

 When the bottles are filled, cover the contents 

 with cold water, place the rubber rings into 

 position, put on the stoppers; if the screw cap 

 be used, it should be made as tight as possible; 



the spring clip will require no further adjusting 

 after being put on. Place the bottles into the 

 sterilizer, and cover up to the neck with cold 

 water. The sterilizer should then be placed 

 over an oil stove or slow fire till the temperature 

 of the water rises gradually, not more than 

 two degrees per minute, imtil it reaches 150'^ 

 Far. The sterilizer should then be removed 

 from the fire, and allowed to stand at this tem- 

 perature for not less than half-an-hour. The 

 bottles should then be removed from the 

 sterilizer, and if screw caps be used they should 

 be made tight.. When the bottles are cold, rub 

 the caps over with an oily cloth, to keep them 

 from rusting, and store in any convenient place. 

 Tomatoes are always in demand as a vegetable. 

 This fruit must be sterilized twice, and the 

 temperature should rise to 100°, allowing not 

 less than a day between the times of heating. 

 Wipe the fruit with a cloth, and remove the 

 stalks before bottling. Sometimes the screw- 

 caps are hard to remove when the bottles liave 

 been stored for any length of time ; to prevent 

 tliis, unscrew the cap slightly before storing. 

 The screw-caps and spring-clips only act as a 

 holdfast when the bottles are cooling, and as 

 a protector to the stoppers while in storage. 



Haricot Beans. 



Tx the past too little attention was paid to the 

 food value of vegetables. In the days when 

 meat was cheap and plentiful vegetables 

 occupied a secondary place in the dietary of 

 most families ; now, however, when the joint 

 is a thing of the past, we are groping for sub- 

 stitutes, and happily they are to hand. The 

 Potato is enjojdng a boom such as it never had 

 before, and its value for producing a bulk of 

 food material is high, but in actual food value 

 it is inferior to some other vegetables, notably 

 Haricot Beans. In Continental countries they 

 have long known and appreciated vegetables as 

 food, and have inade an art of cooking them. 

 We, too, must learn this art, and should grasp 

 the fact that Haricot Beans are even more 

 nourishing than meat. Their culture is com- 

 paratively simple. Deeply-dug soil and an open 

 position are necessary. The deep cultivation 

 of the soil is of the greatest importance, for ou) 

 no account must the plants suffer from drought 

 if a good harvest of Beans is to result. iManiu'e 

 will be necessary in poor, dry soils, and a 

 moderate dressing will be beneficial on soils of 

 good quality. The seeds should not be sown 

 before the first week in May, except in thoi 

 south or in localities known to be immune from 



