76 Pumpkins 



heit until they are thoroughly dried. Sweet 

 potatoes always shrink from fifteen to twenty-five 

 per cent., and this loss must be expected. They 

 should be dug as soon as frost kills the tops, but 

 if there are a great number to be dug, the work 

 had best be begun ahead of frost, as it will not do 

 to let them lay too long. 



PUMPKINS 



The pumpkin requires a fairly rich soil and good 

 drainage. The seed should be planted in hills 

 from five to seven feet apart and eight or ten seed 

 to a hill. Planted among the corn, it will give 

 good results. They should not be planted until 

 all danger of frost is over. 



Pumpkins should be picked with a couple of inches 

 of the stem left on or the fruit may start to rot at the 

 stem center. Bugs also find an easy entrance 

 there. They can be kept for a long time in dry 

 storage. 



It is better to have all the fertilizer necessary in 

 the soil for pumpkins before they are planted, and 

 if it is necessary to fertilize later, the fertilizer 

 should not touch the seed or the young roots. 



