CELERY 



CELERY 



707 



Storage. 



A large percentage of the late celery crop is placed 

 in city cold-storage houses. It is packed with the 

 roots on, and there is very little trimming. Golden 

 Self-blanching keeps fairly well in cold storage, or at 

 least the hearts are presentable when they come out 

 of storage. This is the product that now meets the 

 general demand of the large cities until celery begins 

 to arrive from Florida. 



In the North, this crop is very commonly stored in 

 trenches. The trenches are dug in well-drained ground 

 and must be deep enough to accommodate the plants 

 so that the tops will not extend more than about 2 

 or 3 inches above the trenches. The celery will keep 

 better if the trenches are not too wide. Ordinarily 

 they are dug 10 to 14 inches wide. The plants are 

 lifted and stood as close together in the trench as pos- 

 sible. Some growers prefer to place a little earth over 

 the roots, although this is not necessary. If the tops 

 of the plants are 

 dry when stored, 

 and if the plants 

 are not permit- 

 ted to wilt by 

 being in the 

 sunshine, they 

 should keep in 

 perfect condi- 

 tion in the 

 trenches. Boards 

 are nailed to- 

 gether in the 

 form of a trough 

 and placed over 

 the trenches as 

 rapidly as they 

 are filled. Early 

 in the season, 

 and especially if 

 the weather is 

 quite warm, it is 

 an advantage to 

 provide addi- 

 tional ventila- 

 tion by placing 

 stones or blocks 

 under the edges 

 of the trough. 

 As the season 

 advances and 

 the weather be- 

 comes colder, 

 these should be 



864. Celery plant trimmed for market. 



removed and when necessary, earth, or, better, manure, 

 thrown over the boards to give additional protection. 

 Four or 5 inches of manure will protect the crop 

 thoroughly in most sections until Thanksgiving and 

 perhaps Christmas, depending on the weather. Two 

 kinds of trench storage are shown in Figs. 865, 866. 



The late crop is often stored in coldframes of suffi- 

 cient depth to receive the plants. The frames are 

 usually covered with boards lapped in roof fashion, and 

 straw or marsh hay is placed over the boards when 

 necessary to give additional protection. 



Ordinary house cellars, which are well ventilated 

 and not too warm, may be used for storing a limited 

 quantity of celery. Various types of houses have been 

 built for keeping the croj.. Cement or brick structures 

 are perhaps the most serviceable. It is important to 

 provide ample ventilation in structures of this kind. In 

 some regions, as around Boston, pits are constructed. 

 The sides of these should be about 2 feet high and the 

 roof may be constructed in an even-span form or sim- 

 ply a shed roof against some other building. Boards 

 are also used for the roofs and covered with straw or 

 hay to give protection during cold weather. 



Enemies. 



Celery does not have any serious insect enemies. 

 Diseases are much more destructive and difficult to 

 control. The most important diseases are the blights 

 (Cercospora apii and Septoria petroselini var. apii), 

 leaf -spot (Phylloslicta apii), and rust (Puccinia bul- 

 lata). The application of bordeaux mixture in the seed- 

 bed will help to control some of these diseases. Many 

 growers also find it necessary to make frequent appli- 

 cations of bordeaux mixture in the field in order to 

 prevent serious losses. The complete control of dis- 

 eases in the field may be the means of avoiding loss in 

 storage. The earlier applications of bordeaux mix- 

 ture are regarded as the most effective. Rotation is 

 also desirable in preventing losses from disease. 



R. L. WATTS. 



Celery-growing in the South. 



The method of raising celery seedlings is not the 

 same in the South, and especially in Florida, as it is 

 in the North. Sowing is done in July, August, and 

 September, at a time of the year when there is con- 

 tinued warm weather, and frequent beating rain. 



A place is chosen for the seed-bed near the celery 

 field, usually a plot at the edge. The size of the field 

 to be planted will determine the extent of the seed- 

 bed. The width of the seed-bed varies from 18 to 36 

 inches. Rows are sown across it, making it possible to 

 weed and keep the earth worked from both sides. 

 Immediately after sowing, pieces of heavy burlap 

 (usually old fertilizer sacks) are placed over the beds 

 to conserve the moisture, cool the soil, and to protect 

 the seeds against the beating of heavy rains. The 

 seed-beds are sprinkled as often as is necessary to 

 keep the surface moist. 



After the seeds have germinated and the seed-leaves 

 have pushed their way through the ground, the sack- 

 ing is removed and a screening of cheese-cloth is 

 placed over the bed. Some beds may be covered with 

 cheese-cloth parallel to the surface of the soil. In other 

 cases, a wire is run lengthways over the middle of the 

 bed, and the cheese-cloth is placed over the wire and 

 secured at the sides like a roof. The covering is about 

 8 to 12 inches above the bed, which gives room for the 

 circulation of air. The beds are kept moist by repeated 

 watering, applied directly through the cheese-cloth. 



As soon as the plants are 2 or 3 inches high and are 

 well greened, they will be strong enough to stand direct 

 sunlight and will shade the ground sufficiently to keep 

 it from drying out rapidly. 



The best variety. 



Formerly nearly all varieties of which seeds were 

 offered by seedsmen were planted. In recent years, 

 however, all have been nearly eliminated except the 

 Golden Self-blanching. The seed of this variety is very 

 high in price and, in years of scarcity, seed supplied 

 under this name is often found to be more or less untrue 

 to type. Seed of low-germinating quality is often found 

 to contain many plants that will make unwelcome vege- 

 tables, probably because the undesirable green and red 

 strains that may occur in the Golden Self-blanching 

 variety are more resistant to deterioration than the 

 true type. 



Planting and blanching. 



Blanching is secured entirely by the boarding-up 

 method. For this purpose, second- or third-grade 

 cypress boards are used ; these low-grade boards usually 

 have defective parts or are filled with worm-holes so as 

 to be obtainable rather cheaply. The expense of the 

 lumber, notwithstanding, is so great that it becomes 

 necessary to plant the celery in double rows. Two rows 

 are planted 8 or 10 inches apart, and tho plants set 6 or 

 8 inches apart in the row. By alternating the settings in 

 the two rows, additional space is secured for the plants. 



