72 TRUCK FARMING 



If the crop be an early one, there is some danger of the bean 

 weevil attacking the vines. This can be prevented by early appli- 

 cations of finely ground tobacco dust, the kind that is sold for 

 insecticides being used. To prevent both mildew and ravages of 

 insects, I would strongly recommend an application of sulphur, 

 lime and tobacco, equal parts. Should frequent heavy rains have 

 a tendency to wash off these insecticides, a second application of 

 solution of arsenic of lead should be given, being careful not to 

 get this mixture too strong, as bean leaves are very easily burnt 

 by poisonous substances. One good, thorough application gener- 

 ally suffices to destroy these bean-leaf eaters, or at least to thin 

 them out so that very little damage will be experienced from them 

 afterward. 



About ten days from the time the first blooms appear, if the 

 crop has been properly taken care of and other conditions are 

 right, they will be ready for the first picking. Great care must 

 be taken not to handle the vines when the dew is on them or when 

 wet after a rain. They must be handled very carefully, and 

 such pickers as are apt to lay the vines over or wallow them 

 around in a miscellaneous way should be watched very closely. 

 Such treatment of the vines is liable to curtail the crop by 50 per 

 cent. Great care must also be taken not to pick any undersized 

 beans, or your next picking will be very light, as you will find. 

 They will be ready for the second picking in about two or three 

 days. Our best growers usually pick every second or third day, 

 and are thereby enabled to fill their packages with well matured, 

 tender beans at all times. Such beans will probably bring 30 per 

 cent more in the market than the carelessly picked article, and 

 often two or three times as much as those that are left to grow old 

 or are given indifferent attention. 



Picking is best done by paying so much per crate or pound 

 usually one cent per pound in this country. The product should 

 be protected by burlap from the direct rays of the sun. Each 

 picker should be required to deliver his beans directly to the pack- 

 ing house from the nearby field. They are then carefully packed 

 in bean hampers, any defective, mutilated or overgrown beans 



