PREFACE xiii 



means that the plant requires two years for developing 

 its seed; "perennial" means that, however often the 

 plant may produce seed, its root lives on for a number 

 of years. 



For each plant are given sowing-directions. I as- 

 sume that nowadays no one grows vegetables in beds. 

 Space is better utilized and labor is saved by growing 

 the plants in drills or rows, except in the field-culture 

 of various crops, sowed broadcast, with which this book 

 has nothing to do. Broadcast sowing in the seed-bed is, 

 of course, a recognized garden practice resorted to in 

 special cases. 



The proper distance of rows from each other is prac- 

 tically determined by the height and spread (whether 

 above or below grouncH of the plants: they should not 

 crowd or shade each other. The distances here given are 

 the smallest which can safely be used for hand culture. 

 Convenience will in many cases lead the gardener to 

 plant at greater distances if he has the space, while if 

 he depends on horse-culture he must plant still farther 

 apart, usually thirty inches at the least. That is his 

 affair. This book is intended to help not only the man 

 with plenty of room, but also the man who, by means 

 of intensive cultivation, must get all he can from a 

 small patch. 



Indicating the distances that seed should be sown in 

 the rows is intended to help in economizing seed as 

 well as in the saving of labor. It is wasteful to sow an 



