96 MARKET GARDENING 



Cultivation. Frequent and thorough cultivation should 

 be practiced, horse-drawn implements being used until too 

 much damage is done the growing crop. 



Varieties. Golden Bantam, Crosby and Red Cob Cory 

 are good early varieties. Country Gentleman and Sto- 

 welPs Evergreen are the most popular and desirable of the 

 later varieties. 



XXIII. TOMATOES 



Soil. The tomato can be grown successfully on most 

 soils, provided they are fertile and well drained. On 

 the lighter soils, such as sandy loams, the earliest fruits 

 are produced, but the fruit usually is not so firm and meaty 

 as when it is produced on heavier soil. The yield is usu- 

 ally somewhat heavier on the lighter soils than it is on the 

 heavier soils. 



Planting. For earliest results, the seed must be sown 

 under glass about the first of March. The seedlings 

 may be transplanted into flats being set three by three or 

 four by four inches, or they may be set in pots or berry 

 baskets. A three-inch pot is suitable for the first trans- 

 planting. As the plants become larger and the roots begin 

 to fill the pots, they should be shifted into larger pots. This 

 procedure should be repeated until the conditions are right 

 for setting the plants in the field. 



The first bud cluster should be pinched out. This will 

 cause the plants to branch out and the formation of several 

 bud clusters in place of the one removed. If the plants are 

 well handled and have not been allowed to crowd or become 

 spindly, they may have blossoms or small tomatoes on them 

 when set in the field. If the transplanting is done care- 

 fully, and the plants have been properly hardened, the 

 blossoms and small fruit will continue to develop normally. 



