PREFACE. 



THOUGH embracing all the directions neces- 

 sary for the successful management of a Vege- 

 table Garden, the present volume is offered to 

 the public as a manual, or guide, to assist in 

 the selection of varieties rather than as a 

 treatise on cultivation. Through the standard 

 works of American authors, as well as by means 

 of the numerous agricultural and horticultural 

 periodicals of our time, all information of im- 

 portance relative to the various methods of 

 propagation and culture, now in general prac- 

 tice, can be readily obtained. 



But, with regard to the characteristics which 

 distinguish the numerous varieties; their dif- 

 ference in size, form, color, quality, and season 



A* (v) 



