FIELD CULTURE OF TOMATOES 291 



leaf, and with a small hard-wood stick, made pointed at one end, 

 take up the young plants and dibble them in clear down to the seed 

 leaf. Place them about three inches apart each way, water them 

 well, and in a few days they will begin to grow, and in this way 

 fine, stocky plants can be grown almost ready to blossom when 

 they are set out in the open ground where they are to remain. 

 There is nothing gained by setting out tomatoes in the open ground 

 when they are too small ; if anything, time is lost by doing so, while 

 a large, stocky plant has plenty of fine fibrous roots, and is rapidly 

 established in its new place. 



Tomato plants may also be grown from stem cuttings, as de- 

 scribed in the chapter on propagation. 



Planting Out Tomatoes. In addition to suggestions already 

 made for planting out, it should be remarked that for late planting 

 especially, and in light soils, it is desirable to set the plants quite 

 deeply in the soil. The rule with some growers is to set the plant 

 half the length of the stem deeper than it stood in the seed bed and 

 in light, dry interior soils the stem has been entirely buried with 

 good results. Depth of planting depends upon the character of the 

 soil and its content of moisture. Where moisture is to be abundant 

 it is better to have the roots nearer the surface. 



Preparation of land for tomatoes should begin early in the 

 rainy season, as for beans, corn or melons, to render the soil ab- 

 sorptive of moisture and to secure good deep tilth. Re-working in 

 the spring, and cultivation until it is safe to plant out the tomatoes, 

 keeps the soil in fine condition, saves moisture and insures a crop 

 at minimum cost. Crops are often grown on spring plowing alone, 

 but it is an uphill task, and attended by great risk of failure, if 

 spring rains are scant, as they often are. 



Field planting is generally done by hand, sometimes at the 

 intersection of cross-markings, but often with less care, by placing 

 the plants firmly on the side of a furrow and covering with another 

 furrow. Some large growers use the transplanting machine men- 

 tioned for sweet potatoes, and it works well when the soil is in good 

 condition. 



Distance depends upon variety. The usual distance is six 

 feet apart each way, for the standard growers, but some plant 

 more widely, and dwarf varieties are set at intervals of four feet. 



Summer Treatment. Very seldom is any effort made even in 

 garden culture to support the plant above the earth surface. As the 



