24: SQUASHES, HOW TO GKOW THEM, ETC. 



Many old farmers lay down the rule that no one shall 

 set foot on the squash patch after the vines meet between 

 the rows. This is a good general rule, for most men 

 tread among vines as ruthlessly as though passing among 

 wire cables, crushing them under foot with perfect impu- 

 nity. I don't think I ever saw a farmer pass among even 

 his own vines with what I should call proper care. If 

 necessary to pass among vines, carry a short stick in one 

 hand to lift the leaves to see where the foot is to rest be- 

 fore planting it. 



SQUASHES WITH OTHER CROPS. 



In the vicinity of large cities, where land, manure, and 

 labor are costly and much of the market gardening in 

 the vicinity of Boston, ISTew York and Philadelphia is 

 on land worth from $500 to $1,000 an acre farmers 

 usually grow their squashes in connection with other 

 crops. These are oftentimes Peas and early Cabbages. 

 If early Peas or Cabbages are planted in rows three feet 

 apart, by omitting every third row, and planting this 

 to squashes at the usual time, the crops will not inter- 

 fere with each other, as the squashes do not push their 

 runners till July, after the pea crop has been marketed. 

 With Cabbage, the third row may be omitted, or every 

 third plant in the third row; this will give the squashes 

 9x9. It will be seen that squashes can be raised only 

 with the earliest varieties of Cabbage, such as Early 

 Wakefield, Early Oxheart, Early York, Little . Pixie, 

 Burnels, King of Dwarfs, that have been started in a hot 

 bed. The plan practised occasionally of growing 

 squashes among corn, I consider a bad one. It is very 

 common in the country to plant at the second hoeing a 

 couple of seed of the Yellow Field Pumpkins in every 

 third or fourth hill, and the yield is usually satisfactory 

 to the farmer ; though if a field was divided in two, and 



