Cultural Directions. 177 



of land will be best, and shading may be required in most cases. 

 But it seems to me that southern people, if they take these same 

 precautions in the selection and treatment of a patch, could grow 

 their own supply of plants without much difficulty. 



In the foregoing I have given you one of the " secrets " in 

 horticulture that are of money value to those who make a 

 proper use of it. The knowledge of " how to grow celery 

 plants " brings me at least a little money every season. 



PLANTING. Now we have the plants, and good ones, too. 

 The next thing is to set them so they will make a good crop. 

 The soil selected is usually such as is cleared from an early crop, 

 or, in the home garden, any available spot in composition between 

 sand and clay. If the first crop, as is very likely the case, was 

 well supplied with feed in the shape of compost, there will be 

 enough left of it to carry the celery crop through all right. In 

 practice, I prefer to apply additional manures or fertilizers even 

 then, and I do this in various ways, according to the particular 

 circumstances of the case. To plant a patch, even if not larger 

 than for a few hundred plants, furrows are opened with a one- 

 horse plow, going twice in same furrow to get the desired depth. 

 These furrows are made three feet apart for the self-bleaching 

 sorts, and somewhat more (from 4 to 5 feet) for the common 

 sorts that have to be bleached by " banking " or earthing-up. 

 They are partly filled with fine, thoroughly-rotted compost ' 

 preferably of cow manure , fine barn-yard scrapings, etc., and 

 some soil mixed all through it. More soil is then filled in, and 

 the rows made nearly level with the surface. 



If only a single row of celery, and a short one at that, is to 

 be planted, as sometimes happens when a small strip of the vege- 

 table garden becomes available, I merely apply the compost 

 along the row to the width of about a foot, and fork or spade 

 this nicely in. A little fertilizer or wood-ashes is scattered on 

 top, and the soil raked smooth and even. After the ground has 

 been prepared by either method, the garden line is tightly 

 stretched along the row, and the plants set six inches apart. 



At the north our usual time of setting celery plants is early 

 in July, and for winter use up to August. Gardeners in the 

 middle and southern states plant correspondingly later. The 

 plants should be lifted from the seed row when the ground is wet, 

 or at least moist. In a dry spell I always give the plant rows a 

 thorough soaking an hour or two previous to pulling plants. The 

 ground where plants are to be set should also be moist. Let me 

 again call attention to the general rule (which especially is not 

 to be disregarded during a dry time) : Always sow and plant in 

 freshly-stirred soil ; then firm thoroughly. The plants after being 

 pulled are properly trimmed or clipped at both ends, the roots 

 dipped in water and planted with a dibber, which is also used to 



