THE PEA. 505 



Bishop's New Long Pod, and the like, the soil can hardly 

 be too rich. 



Seed and Sowing. A quart of ripe peas is equal to 

 about two pounds' weight, and contains, of the largest sized 

 varieties, about thirteen hundred, and of the smaller descrip- 

 tions about two thousand, seeds. A pint of the small-seeded 

 sorts, such as the Daniel O'Rourke, Early Frame, and Early 

 Charlton, will sow a row about sixty feet in length ; and 

 the same quantity of larger growing sorts will sow a row of 

 nearly a hundred feet, on account of being sown so much 

 thinner. A fair average depth for covering the seed is two 

 and a half or three inches ; though some practice planting 

 four or five inches deep, which is said to be a preventive 

 against the premature decay of the vines near the roots. 



As to distance between the rows, when peas are sown in 

 the usual manner (that is, row after row throughout the 

 whole field), they should be as far asunder as the length of 

 the stem of the variety cultivated : thus a pea that attains a 

 height or length of two feet should have two feet from row 

 to row, and so on to those taller or lower growing. 



They are sometimes sown two rows together, about a foot 

 apart, and ten, twenty, or even fifty feet between the double 

 rows ; by which every portion of the crop is well exposed to 

 the sun and air, and the produce gathered with great facility. 

 There is no loss of ground by this method ; for other crops 

 can be planted within a foot or two of the rows, and this 

 amount of space is necessary for the purpose of gathering. 



A common practice in ordinary garden culture is to sow 

 in double rows twelve or fourteen inches apart, slightly 

 raising the soil for the purpose. When so planted, all of 

 the sorts not over two feet in height may be successfully 

 grown without sticking. When varieties of much taller 

 growth are sown, a greater yield will be secured by bushing 

 the plants, which is more economically, as well as more 

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