May, 1913 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST 



131 



Lettuce Grown by R. H. Ellii, Leamington, Ont., Spring of 1912 



individual 

 hand and 



this by holding each individual plant 

 firmly with your left hand and using 

 your right to draw the earth, being very 

 careful not to let any earth run in be- 

 tween the stalks. 



BLEACHING 



To thoroughly bleach the celery fit for 

 table use, allow yourself ten days or two 

 weeks, covering up within four inches of 

 the tops of the foliage. Scatter a little 

 sulphur or slaked lime over your bed 

 twice during the season. Look occas- 

 ionally for a green and yellow cater- 

 pillar. Don't squirt water on the foliage. 

 Carry out the foregoing instructions and 

 you will have celery fit to place before a 

 king. 



I recommend the earth instead of paper 

 or boards for bleaching, because I have 

 tried all these ways, and find the earth 

 far preferable. It gives the celery a 

 sweet nutty taste and the bleaching is 

 more complete. 



Tomato Growing 



By an Amateur, Sariii, Oat. 

 The following methods, as used ry 

 me. have proved successful in growing 

 suflficient tomatoes for a small family on 

 a plot of ground twelve feet square. The 

 tomatoes were grown on a single stem, 

 tied to stakes. 



Procure stakes eight feet long. One 

 way to do this is to get two inch planks 

 at a saw mill, sixteen feet long. Have 

 them sawn into strips two inches wide, 

 then cut in halves and you have twenty- 

 four uprights. Thoroughly enrich t^e 

 ground. It cannot be too rich. 



Dig trenches across the plot three f'^et 

 apart, and one foot deep. Plant 'he 

 stakes in the trenches two feet apart. 

 When danger of fro.st is over plant a well 

 grown tomato at each stake. If the 

 tomato branches to the root cut all the 

 branches but two leaving the main stem . 

 Hrnd these branches down and cover with 



earth, .^s the main stem grows up the 

 stake, keep filling in the earth in the 

 trenches until the ground is level. 



Each plant must be tied to the staKC. 

 l^se the first tie about one foot above 

 the level ground- .'Vfter that, tie as the 

 plant needs support. Use soft tying ma- 

 terial such as candle wick, or strips of 

 cotton. Do not wrap the tie cord rouid 

 the plant. Wrap it round the stake, and 

 pass it round the plant. Do not tie 

 tightly. 



As the plants grow they must be ex- 

 amined frequently so that all extra 

 growth may be pruned out as early as 

 possible. Branches and fruit will start 

 from every joint close to the stent, and 

 just as soon as the growth shows which 

 is fruit and which is branch, the branch 

 should be pinched out. The earlier chis 

 is done the more strength will be thrown 

 into the stem and the fruit. 



The stake will be about seven feet 

 above the ground. In a good soil Ihe 

 plant should grow higher than the stake. 

 After the plant is say two feet above the 

 level ground the bottom leaves for the 

 first foot can be cut off and then the 

 ground can be frequently raked and kept 

 clean. 



Questions on Tomato Growing 

 Answered 



A. Walker, Macdontid College, Que. 



What are th^ best -varieties of tomatoes and 

 the beet greenhouse construction fo-r the grow- 

 ing of such a crop? — Subscriiber. British ColTian- 

 bia. 



Of the varieties we have tested here 

 Livingston's Globe is easily the best for 

 the following reasons : The growth is 

 ideal in that it is not too gross and the 

 foliage ample without being too dense. 

 This is a good feature as you can plant 

 such a variety clo.ser. The fruits are 

 very uniform in size and of excellent 

 form. Very few are rubbishy or small, 

 which one so often finds in other varie- 

 ties. The color is a very pleasing pink. 



The maximum amount of light is per- 

 haps the most important feature to be 

 considered in constructing houses for 

 this crop, although the question of ven- 

 tilation is of about equal importance. I 

 would advise detached houses running 

 east and west sufficiently far apart that 

 no shade would be thrown from one to 

 the other. Then by using continuous 

 ventilation on top and both sides, you 

 have an ideal house. 



There are so many up-to-date con- 

 structions to-day that I fear if I advise 

 any special one I will have the time of 

 my life warding off the attacks of the 

 others. Suffice it to say the wider the 

 house the better air conditions. The 

 pitch of a house should be governed 

 by the .section of the country in which 

 it is built. In British Columbia I would 

 say from 30 to 35 degrees would be 

 ample. 



As a guide regarding the width of 

 houses being specially constructed for 

 the crops, I should say that 23 feet 

 would be the maximum interior width, 

 made up as follows : 



Practically all vegetables are heavy 

 feeders on the plant food in the soil, and 

 .so require lots of fertility, and speaking 

 generally, stable manure gives the best 

 results as a fertilizer. For such foliage 

 plants as lettuce, cabbage and cauliflow- 

 ers, a light application of nitrate of soda 

 frequently about the plants, induces a 

 quick, rapid growth, but care should be 

 taken that the fertilizer does not come 

 in contact with the plants, or they are 

 apt to be killed by it. 



Mildew is a fungus that develops rap- 

 idly in damp weather. Flower of sulphur 

 duste3 on the leaves when they are damp 

 will prove an effective remedy- 



The eaves of house should be at least 

 seven feet in order to have plenty of head 

 room for plants on side tjeds. , Solid 

 beds close to the ground well drained 

 serve as well as raised benches for the 

 crop. 



The weight of glass per square foot 

 need not worry anyone, as all forms of 

 construction are sufficiently strong to 

 carry whatever weight of glass may be 

 used in greenhouse construction. 



