1896 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



837 



out on tbe lawn in front of the dooryard. Un- 

 der the circumstances I excused myself from 

 going in; and after looking over ihe thrifty 

 young fruit-trees and discussing fruit and kin- 

 dred industries, I prepared to go on — slopping 

 long enough, of course, to sit down on one of 

 the lounges and sample some of the apples we 

 had been talking about. Mrs. (Jreen soon came 

 out with a very pretty grandchild in her arms; 

 and just as 1 started to go away she informed 

 me that they had decided to clean house, even 

 If it was election day, because they would be 



young giants in stature, they are nice-looking 

 boys, and good ones. 



As I sprang from my wheel my eyes were de- 

 lighted with a group of the prettiest cold- 

 frames tilled with plants that it was ever my 

 fortune to behold. It is only once in a great 

 wliile that I see any thing in the way of plant- 

 growing that just meets my ideal. We had it 

 here to a dot. There was no new invention 

 about it particularly; but it was a well-made 

 cold-frame on principles which most of us know 

 all about. 



A COLD-FRAME FOB WIXTERtNG OVKB CAIiBAGE, CAULlKLu vVcii, I.K1TUCE, ETC. 



pretty sure of having no visitors. This was 

 said just as 1 started oil. liy the way, let me 

 remark that other people have found out what 

 a beautiful fruit that sloe plum is that 1 have 

 been lelliug you about. Friend Green said 

 that, a few years ago, they budded quite a lot 

 of them, but there was not very much call for 

 them, and their stock ran down. This year, 

 however, there has been quite a demand for it. 

 They are not only almost the handsomest fruit 

 that one can have in his dooryard, but they are 

 luscious to eat raw — that is. where one loves 

 the taste of the wild plums as 1 do; and there 

 is no nicer plum in the world for sauce and 

 canning. lean not find that any nurseryman 

 advertises them; but friend Green promises to 

 procure some for me, if they can be had. One 

 reason why 1 always enjoy a visit to this nur- 

 sery is that our veteran friend not only loves 

 fruit and fruit trees, hut he loves, more than 

 all, the kliHjdorn of Ood and his righteons)} ess. 

 1 had planned to visit the Atwood celery- 

 farm; but as the wind was blowing strongly in 

 the direction of my home, and it was near 

 night, 1 decided to go home on the cars. When 

 I reached Fairlawn station it was just an hour 

 till train time. The celery farm was two miles 

 and a half away. Counting a mile for every 

 five minutes on the wheel, and live minutes 

 more for little hindrances, my visit to the 

 celery-ground could not occupy more than 2.5 

 minutes. 1 sprang on to my wheel, and was 



tust making things fly, having covered about 

 alf the distance, when my eye caught sight of 

 a cluster of glass-covered frames, and ihen 

 another long frame newly made covered with 

 beautiful white and glistening glass sashes. 

 The rays of the declining sun rhale them 

 glisten. It was a surprise to me. because I was 

 somewhat acquainted in that vicinity. Said I 

 to myself, " Why, how does it come that some- 

 body is enterprising enough to invest in sashes 

 and gardening implements at just this time 

 when every thing is so low, and so many people 

 are lamenting about the "hard times" ("^ee 

 page 833)? Instead of g(jing ahead I turned my 

 wheel aliruptly and roile up the lane, where an 

 exceedingly tall slim young man was watering 

 plants with a hose and sprinkler. I then re- 

 membered that this was the residence of Mr. 

 Miller, whom I have before mentioned as a 

 progres'sive market gardener. Friend M. is 

 gt'tting pretty well along in years, and he has 

 turned over the gardening business to his stal- 

 wart boys. Now, even if his three boys are 



The picture above shows just about how the 

 frame or pit was made, except that the sashes 

 were more nearly level. In fact, the ridge- 

 pole was not more than 10 or 12 inches above 

 the outside; and there was, of course, no gable 

 end to speak of. The special feature of these 

 cold frames — there were four of them — was 

 that the whole outside was made of good hard 

 brick laid in cement. The surface of the bed 

 where the plants stood was about a fool below 

 the level of the ground; and the earth thrown 

 out was banked up around perhaps another 

 foot above tlie surface. This made the wails 2 

 feet deep— tliat is, it was about 3 feet from the 

 eaves to the surface of the soil where the 

 plants stood. 



Now, I have a great many, times been dis- 

 gusted with wooden stakes and wooden plank 

 for cold-frames and plant-beds. With the 

 heavy watering that is necessary to get the 

 best results from plants, in connection with the 

 high temperature needed to have them grow 

 well, any kind of wood will soon rot and become 

 unsightly, and be civing way. This brick and 

 cement would last, I suppose, a lifetime. Then 

 there is another advantage that I have been 

 thinking of for some years past— a sunken bed 

 is much better for plants than one level with 

 the ground, or raised up above the ground- 

 level. It is better in the summer when the 

 plants are likely to dry up and be scorched by 

 the intense heat of the sun; and it is ever so 

 much belter in winter time, because It is a far 

 easier matter to give ample protection from 

 frost — especially around the outside edges of 

 the bed. providing (tlwnys that you have per- 

 fcct dntindge. The Milh-r brothers have their 

 sashes to slide on the rafters; and when they 

 are pulled back, the lower end of the sash rests 

 on a bar of wood fastened to stakes jn<t a little 

 above the surface of the ground. They make 

 it a rule to uncover their cold-frame cabbage- 

 plants whenever the weather is above the 

 freezing-point. When every thing is frozen up 

 solid, tiie sashes are kept closed and not dis- 

 turbed at all. With the neat well-fitting and 

 perfectly tight sashes and rafters. I should not 

 be surprised if it were rare to find the surface 

 of the ground frozen where these cabb<ge- 

 plants sta-id. When I saw them, each plant 

 had leaves about as large as a fifty-cent piece. 

 The leaves were dark green, clean and thrifty. 

 The plants were put in by a spacing-board 

 such as we use, at exact distances, and there 

 was hardly a miss or break in the whole four 



