750 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Oct. 1.5. 



SPECIAL DEPARTMENT FOR A. I. ROOT. AND HIS 

 FRIENDS WHO LOVE TO RAISE CROPS. 



That art on which a thousand millions of men are dependent 

 for their sustenance, and two Inuuired millions of men expend 

 their daily toil, must be the most important of all— the parent 

 and precursor of all other arts. In every country, then, and at 

 every period, the investigation of the principles on which the 

 rational practice of this art is founded ought to have command- 

 ed the principal attention of the greatest minds. 



James F. W. Johnston. 



RAISING FEWEK KINDS OF VEGETABLES; E. C. 



GREEN, OF THE OHIO EXPERIMENT STATION, 



DISCUSSES THE MATTER. 



Mr. Boot: — Your idea of making your cata- 

 logiif of soods contain only one or two kinds of 

 the best, struck nie so favorably that I have 

 added my mite. After being here at the station 

 in the garden for two years, and testing varie- 

 ties of vegetables by the wholesale, as one 

 might say, this idea struck me as a most sensi- 

 ble one, especially so when coming from a 

 seedsman. To give an idea of the seeds we 

 test, this year our list is something like this: 



Potatoes, about 90 kinds; onions, 40; sweet 

 corn, 40; tomatoes, .50; celery, ,50; cabbage, late, 

 40; early, 20; and so on through the list of veg- 

 etable's, to say nothing of small fruits. We 

 have been trying to cut our list down to include 

 the standard of the old kinds and the newer 

 varieties. 



In lettuce we have made three tests during 

 the past year — two in the greenhouse and one 

 in the field, which included about 90 so-called 

 sorts each time. I say "so-called" sorts, for it 

 is not at all strange to find one kind with sev- 

 eral names: and it sometimes happens that a 

 seedsman will send out the same kind of veget- 

 able under two names. Taking, for example, 

 lettuce, I found, out of the 90 so-called varieties, 

 they could be divided into about twelve classes, 

 each class containing from two to eight varie- 

 ties. Thus, in one class would be put the 

 Grand Rapids. Black - seeded Simpson, and 

 White-seeded Simpson, and others of this class. 



But after seeing all these kinds growing, I 

 can say that there seems to be one or two in 

 each class that contain the best i)oints; and, 

 taking this with the fact that about two-thirds 

 of the classes are not worth raising, it cuts the 

 list down to a very few kinds; and when we 

 get it down to a few there are still some that are 

 the best for particular markets and uses. 



To cut down a list is quite easy work until 

 we get to the last three oi' four, and then comes 

 the trouble unless we know just what the mar- 

 ket or use they are put to calls for. For exam- 

 ple, does your market call for a bush lettuce, 

 then give them the Black-seeded Simpson or 

 Grand Rapids; if they want a head lettuce, 

 then the Deacon is good; or one for table deco- 

 ration, then the Boston Fine Curled. What is 

 true of lettuce applies to nearly all vegetables; 

 the different kinds and .sorts are mostly made 

 by the seedsmen in order to have a novelty to 

 introduce. Still, there is something new brought 

 nearly every year that is valuable; but to 

 find them among so many that are worthless is 

 a costly task; and, on the whole, it is nearly al- 

 ways more satisfactory to have one or two 

 kinds that do well than so many failures. 



Columbus, O., Oct. 6. E. C. Green. 



Friend G., " a friend in need is a friend in- 

 deed;" and you have come to my aid most op- 

 portunely. Why, with the experience you have 

 just been having you can do us an immense 

 service. A brief article from you— say a single 

 page in Gleanings— will probably save our 

 readers alone thousands of dollars, especially if 



they pi'ofit by it. Now, to start the hall rolling 

 I will briefly map out what I have been pro- 

 posing for the next year. In the following list, 

 where I mention only one vegetable it will be 

 understood that we have decided we need only 

 one kind. After I get through I want your 

 amendments and criticisms at length. Very 

 likely you will double or treble my list. But 

 that is all right. I want you to do so if the 

 best interests of the people demand it. Now, 

 here goes : 



^sjjanjgus— Henderson's Palmetto. 



Bush bemifi — Henderson's Bush Lima; Kid- 

 ney Wax; White Kidney. 



Pole Beans — King of the Garden lima. 



I am not sure that the King of the Garden 

 lima is very much larger than selected beans 

 from the ordinary lima; and you will notice 

 that I have dropped the Extra Early lima. I 

 have done so, because a great many seasons 

 they are little if any earlier than the King of 

 the Garden. 



Bcetst— Eclipse; Lane's Improved vSugar; 

 Long Red Mangel. 



Cabbage— (1 tell you, friends, it is a hard 

 matter here. I have decided not to recommend 

 more than four kinds; but in selecting the 

 four I felt a good deal troubled; but here goes 

 for an attempt.) Jersey Wakefield; Excelsior 

 Flat Dutch; Perfection Drumhead Savoy; 

 Large Red Drumhead. 



Carrots — Orange Danvers. 



Cauliflower — Eai'ly Snowball. 



Ceiery— White Plume; Golden Dwarf; New 

 Rose. 



Sweet corn — Corey's Extra Early; Late Mam- 

 moth. 



Cucumber — Eai'ly Frame; White Spine. 



Lettuce — Grand Rapids; Boston Market; 

 Henderson's New York. 



Muskmelons — Landreth's Extra Early; Emer- 

 ald Gem; Banana. 



Watermelons — Landreth's Extra Early, and — 

 after all the kinds I have planted and tested, 

 I am not really satisfied to give any single one 

 the preference. Friend Green, please supply 

 one besides the Extra Early. 



Onion — Silver Skin; Globe Danvers. For a 

 large foreign onion, started in the greenhouse, 

 I would suggest White Victoria, although I am 

 not sure that it is any better or much if any 

 different fi-om the Silver Skin; for a winter on- 

 ion. Winter or Egyptian onion-sets. 



Parsnip— 1 do not know which kind is best. 

 I am not sure there is much difference. 



Parsley — Double Curl. 



Peas — Alaska; American Wonder; Strata-, 

 gem. 



Peppers — Bullnose; Cayenne. 



Potatoes — Now, right here I can not really de- 

 cide whether we want both Early Ohio and Early 

 Puritan or not; and if we want only one, I am 

 afraid to put either in place of the other. For 

 late I would have Lee's Favorite; and for a 



