Vegetables with Edible Fruits 179 



fruited varieties, such as Ponderosa, seem to be preferred 

 for local use; though when, as in Cuba, tomatoes are 

 grown for northern markets, the medium-sized shipping 

 varieties have the preference. 



In the United States, more and more attention is given 

 to placing this vegetable in the market all the year round. 

 The crop of the North is usually cut off by frosts in Sep- 

 tember or October, while that of the states farther south, 

 such as North and South Carolina, is not usually cut off 

 until November or December. During December the crop 

 from south Florida is brought forward to the market, and 

 the Florida crop continues to be shipped as long as it will 

 pay for transportation. Under favorable conditions, by 

 the first of May the crop as far north as Georgia begins to 

 ripen, and is pushed forward to the market, crowding the 

 Florida crop out. 



Tomato seed. 



There are very many seedsmen from whom one can 

 obtain tomato seed, but not all of these grow their own 

 seed. If the seed of a new variety is offered for sale, and 

 it is thought that it will be profitable in a certain section, a 

 package of seed and one year's test will greatly help to 

 decide the question. When a vegetable-grower has once 

 found a well-established variety which gives good success, 

 he should not readily discard it for something else that he 

 has not tried. Money saved by buying inferior seed is 

 lost over and over again in the crop. In selecting seeds- 

 men from whom to procure seed, one should first find out 

 whether they make tomato-seed-growing a specialty, or 

 whether it is merely a secondary matter. Whenever 



