18 SQUASHES, HOW TO GROW THEM, ETC. 



the conclusion stands out with emphasis, that a system 

 that, taking the average of crops, does not give over one 

 squash to two vines, is unnatural, unfarmer-like, and un 

 profitable. 



The shortest distance, where the hill system of planting 

 is pursued, should not be less than 8 feet each way for 

 Boston Marrow squash and other running varieties, 

 with the exception of the Hubbard, Turban, and Yoko- 

 hama, which are ranker growers, and should not be 

 planted nearer than nine or ten feet each way. The hills 

 for the Mammoth varieties should be twelve or more feet 

 apart each way. At these distances apart, two plants in 

 each hill, (the vines being thinned down to that number 

 when the runners begin to start), will be found sufficient 

 to well cover the ground. Were it not for danger from 

 the borer, I would never leave more than one vine to a 

 hill, putting the hills in each case proportionally nearer. 

 One of the finest crops of Turban squashes I ever raised, 

 a crop that took the county premium for yield that year, 

 was raised with but one vine to the hill, and the crop that 

 took our county premium the year previous was grown 

 with two vines to the hill. This brings us to the discus- 

 sion of the Drill versus Hill system of planting. On the 

 supposition that the great error in growing squashes has 

 been to crowd the roots too much together below ground, 

 while the vines were crowded too much together above 

 ground, I have advocated, and to some extent practised, 

 the Drill system of planting having each vine entirely 

 by itself, and distributing them evenly over the ground. 

 Assuming that 10 x 10 or 100 square feet is sufficient room 

 for the plant, on the Drill system, I allow 7x7 or about 

 50 feet for one plant. In planting on this system, the field 

 is marked out as if for hills, the lines crossing each other 

 every seven feet. In planting in drills I put three seeds 

 along in the line, and when the plants begin to show run- 

 ners, thin to one plant. By the drill system, in addition 



