CURRANTS BY THE MARKET GARDENER. 131 



to the matter of currant worms. I think it would be a good idea to 

 encourage the presence of snakes, the common garter snake, in our 

 currant patches. (Laughter.) There are perhaps a half dozen big 

 fat snakes among my currant bushes, and very frequently during 

 the summer I find them in the tops of the bushes, and those are free 

 from currant worms. 



Mr. Hartwell: Where do you find pickers? 



Mr. Long: I have six boys of my own at home, and they have all 

 been brought up like their father, not to be afraid of snakes and! not 

 to kill a snake. When they come to a currant bush with a snake in 

 it, they shake it out and pick the currants. Snakes will keep a place 

 entirely free from mice by killing the young in their nests. 



Prof. Lugger: A snake could not eat currant worms for physical 

 reasons and chickens will not eat them on account of taste, but the 

 good they do is by moving about among the bushes and shaking 

 ■down the worms. A great number are killed by being shaken off 

 when they are not able to crawl back again. It is really a benefit to 

 have snakes and chickens in the currants, but not a direct one. 



Mr. Yahnke: I do not want to depend on snakes and chickens; I 

 -do it myself by spraying. 



MY METHOD OF GROWING TOMATOES. 



AUGUST WITTMANN, MERRIAM PARK. 



In growing tomatoes my chief aim is to get early, smooth and 

 large sized fruit for the market. To obtain this result, it not only 

 requires extra labor but good and sound judgment and, last but 

 not least, a sufficient quantity of seed. I always, without exception, 

 raise my own seed, selecting the first ripe,- smooth and largest 

 tomatoes. I take out and thoroughly dry the seed, clean the same 

 and then store it away in labeled packages in some dry place until 

 seeding time. 



On about the first of March, I begin seeding in a previously well 

 prepared hotbed. When the plants are about three inches high, I 

 transplant them into another well prepared hotbed, so that they 

 will stand about three inches apart each way. On sunny days it is 

 necessary to screen so as to protect the tender plants against the 

 sun's rays until they are well started. In order to obtain strong and 

 short stem plants, plenty of air and sunlight are absolutely neces- 

 sary. At the time when the plants are about six inches high, I 

 again transplant them into another also well prepared hotbed, but 

 this time so as to allot about fifty plants to a sash. At each time of 

 transplanting I set the plants a trifle lower than previously. To 

 obtain hardy plants I remove the sash on warm sunny days after 

 the second transplanting, but replace them again at night or on the 

 approach of a storm. 



The larger plants require watering more frequently than the 

 smaller ones. It is always best to water in the morning, especially 

 «o when cold water ie used, so as to give the sun a chance to take off 

 the chill. 



