VEGETABLES. 



53 » 



newdy potted plants, as there is no root ac- 

 tion to absorb the excess of moisture. 



Water growing plants when they require 

 it. To find out when growing plants need 

 water, watch the surface of the soil closely. 

 When the rough uneven portions of the sur- 

 face of the soil begin to have a light, grey- 

 ish color, or when the top of the soil will 

 crumble between the thumb and finger, the 

 plant requires water. Give sufficient water 

 to moisten the soil to the bottom. Plants 

 should only be watered when the soil re- 

 quires the moisture, which condition can 

 only be learned by experience and observa- 



tion. The dairy or calendar is of no use as 

 a guide in the watering of plants. One rule 

 should always be borne in mind, viz : That 

 sufficient water should always be given 

 growing plants to moisten, not saturate, all 

 the soil in the pot. Light sprinklings of 

 water that only penetrate through an inch 

 or so of the soil are useless. 



In winter use tepid or rain water at a 

 temperature of about 65 degrees. In spite 

 of assertions to the contrary I am satisfied 

 that water of a temperature at or near freez- 

 ing point is injurious to plant life in green- 

 houses, to say nothing of window plants. 



GROWING RHUBARB IN THE CELLAR IN WINTER 



PROF. H. L. HUTT, ONT AGRI. COLLEGE, GUELPH. 



MOST farmers who have a garden 

 usually have a good supply of the 

 old fashioned pie plant or rhubarb. This 

 vigorous growing plant provides a whole- 

 some substitute for fruit early in the spring 

 before strawberries come in. It is not gen- 

 erally known, however, that it can be made 

 to produce its crop in an ordinary cellar dur- 

 ing the winter, when it would probably be 

 more appreciated than when grown in the 

 usual way in the garden in the spring. 



The rhubarb plant makes its most vigor- 

 ous growth under natural conditions early 

 in the spring, when its large leaves store up 

 in the thick fleshy roots a large amount of 

 nutriment for the protection of seed during 

 the summer and growth early next season. 

 To get the best roots for winter forcing it i^ 

 well to allow the plants to make their fu-1 

 growth with little or no cropping of tho 

 leaves the previous season, and above all not 

 to allow them to exhaust themselves by 

 throwing up seed stalks. The more liberally 

 the plants are manured and the better they 

 are cultivated, the stronger the roots become 

 and the better the crop they will give when 

 forced in the cellar. 



In preparing the roots for the cellar, th'^y 



should be dug up late in the fall, just before 

 the ground freezes hard. They should 

 then be left where they will be exposed tD 

 severe freezing for three or four weeks. If 

 placed under cover in an open shed, o*- 

 where they will not be buried in snow, <" 

 will be all the easier to get at them when it 

 is time to take them to the cellar. About 

 Christmas time they may be put in the cellar 

 and should be banked with earth to keep the 

 roots moist. Care should be taken that the 

 plants are set right side up, as at that season 

 it is sometimes difficult to tell which side of 

 the ball of earth the crowns are on. In the 

 course of a few days the roots will thaw out, 

 and usually enough moisture is thus accu- 

 mulated to keep them fresh for some time. 

 They should be watched, however, as they 

 may need watering once or twice during tb.^ 

 winter to keep the soil moist. 



The warmer the cellar, the more quickly 

 growth will start, but for the best results a 

 rather low temperature, about the same a*: 

 that in which potatoes are kept, is best. In 

 a partially lighted cellar the leaf blades will 

 expand very little, and all the strength of 

 the roots will go to the development of the 

 stalks. If the cellar is light, it is well to 



