HOW TO RAISE TOMATOES. 



"7 F good crops of any kind are to be 



U secured, begin with the plow. If 

 you have only two days in which 

 to prepare your ground and put in 

 a crop of tomatoes, by all means use a 

 day and a half in preparing the soil. 

 Make it fine, pulverize it. Keep the 

 harrow going as long as your conscience 

 will let you, and then harrow some 

 more. If the dirt is lumpy, roll it, then 

 harrow, and just before setting out the 

 plants go over the land with a weeder — 

 one of the most valuable machines yet 

 invented. It leaves the land smooth 

 and fine. Of course in a garden the 

 hand rake answers the same purpose as 

 the weeder. 



If stable manure is to be used on the 

 tomato field let it be thoroughly rotted. 

 Do not, under any circumstances, use 

 coarse green manure. I would prefer 

 none at all. Whenever stable manure 

 is used, it should be plowed under in 

 the fall. It is the practice of a great 

 many people to dig a hole and put in a 

 shovelful or two of stable manure, throw 

 on a little dirt and set the plant on top 

 of it. If a rank growth of vine and a 

 lot of green tomatoes are wanted, this 

 method will be sure to give perfect 

 satisfaction I experimented with many 

 kinds of fertilizers for tomatoes, and am 

 still experimenting, but up to the pres- 

 ent time and with my present know- 

 ledge of the matter, know of nothing 

 that will give as satisfactory results as 

 the following, which has produced, so 

 far as can be learned, the largest crop 



of ripe tomatoes ever grown. After the 

 plants were set, a good handful of 

 Bradley's complete potato manure was 

 scattered well about the plant, being 

 careful that it did not touch either leaf 

 or stalk, then about a tablespoonful of 

 nitrate of soda and a good large hand- 

 ful of hard wood ashes were scattered 

 about each plant, and the weeder run 

 over the field. This thoroughly rakes 

 in the fertilizer. The same dose was 

 repeated just after the fruit began to 

 set. This treatment gave not an ex- 

 cessive growth of vine, but the largest 

 crop of ripe tomatoes ever grown, or at 

 least the largest I have ever heard of. 

 It gave me ripe tomatoes by the bushel 

 in 49 days from the time the plants 

 were set in the ground, the variety being 

 the New Imperial. These plants were 

 given clean culture and were not 

 trimmed or racked up in any manner. 



I can not recommend too highly the 

 use of nitrate of soda in growing toma- 

 toes, especially where early ripening is 

 desired. When used at the rate of 150 

 to 175 lbs. per acre, and in connection 

 with wood ashes the total yield of early 

 tomatoes will be very largely increased. 

 A larger quantity of nitrate will increase 

 the yield of fruit, but at the expense of 

 the net profit on the crop. However, 

 great care must be exercised in the 

 application of nitrate of soda to any 

 plants, and especially to the tomato. 

 It should not come in direct contact 

 with either the stalk or roots. — Amer. 

 Agriculturist. 



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