486 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST. 



Express Charges on Vegetables 



S. WARD KENNEDY, LEAMINGTON, ONT. 



IN his remarks on tomato growing in 

 Essex county, which appeared in the 

 September issue of The Canadian Horti- 

 culturist, Mr. W. W. Hilborn does not, to 

 my mind show clearly why we must have 

 better rates to the Northwest. My ship- 

 ment of vegetables was not large, but serves 

 to show the point. The following is a copy 

 of statement I received in regard to my 

 consignment. 

 Aug.2. By 24 Baskets Tomatoes 19.20 



To Express 1 1 .00 



„ Commission 1.92 



„ Money Order .... 6.28 



19.20 19.20 



The tomatoes sold for 80 cents a basket. 



This I am sure is a good price, and yet the 



Express company received nearly double 



what I did. Surely this is not right. 



Growing Celery in Beds 



U \ "1 7 E get good results with celery by 

 V V putting the plants in the old chry- 

 santhemum beds," said Mr. John Whitta- 

 ker, of Whittaker Bros., Cornwall, Ont., to a 

 Horticulturist representative, who visited 

 his place, "We sow the seed about the mid- 

 dle of March, and when the plants are about 

 one inch high transplant them into flats. 

 They are left there until about two or three 

 inches high, then the flats are set out- 

 side to harden the plants. If frost is antici- 

 pated the flats are placed inside or covered 

 with burlap. As soon as danger of frost is 

 past, the plants are set outside in beds 12 

 feet wide. For the early market, plants are 

 set nine inches apart each way, but for the 

 later crop the space is increased to 12 or 

 14 inches. When planted in this way a 

 wheel hoe can be used. By running the 

 hOe both ways very little hand weeding is 

 necessary. When large enough for use, 

 board in all round with a 12-inch board. 



The centre, of course, bleaches itself, how- 

 ever if it does not bleach quickly enough, 

 cover the bed with burlap. The advan- 

 tage of growing celery in this way lies in 

 the fact that the bleaching is more easily 

 done than when celery is grown in trenches, 

 besides which, three or four times as much 

 can be grown on the same amount of 

 ground. The ground of course, must necs- 

 sarily be well manured and watered fre- 

 quently to ensure good growth. White 

 Plume and Paris Golden Yellow are the 

 only varieties I grow, and of these I prefer 

 the latter." 



The Culture of Potatoes 



NO vegetable is raised as extensively 

 as the potato. To the house- 

 holder, who cultivates a few hills in his own 

 garden, and the large grower, who raises 

 many acres, the crop is an important and 

 profitable one. 



A bulletin, devoted exclusively to the cul- 

 ture of potatoes, has recently been issued 

 by Prof. F. Wm. Rane and H. F. Hall, of 



Preparing Roses for Winter, No. 4'. 



The rose bushes bent down and fastened with braces are heie 

 fhcwn. The box is then filled with the dry leaves after which the 

 bushes are ready for the winter. 



the Northwest Agricultural Experiment Sta- 

 tion. According to the bulletin the ideal 

 potato soil is deep, friable, retentive of mois- 

 ture, and well drained. Heavy clay and 

 very light sandy soils should be avoided. 

 Stony land renders planting and cultivating 

 difficult and expensive. 



The presence of decaying organic matter 

 in the soil not only furnishes valuable plant 

 food but also increases its water-holding 

 capacity. Everything else being equal, a 

 northern slope would be preferred to a 

 southern one, except when grown for early 



