THE VEGETABLE GARDEN 219 



the space available for growing vegetables is necessarily small, and 

 plantings must usually be confined to those vegetables wnich produce 

 a large amount of edible product for the space occupied. 



Whether the garden is on the farm, in the village, or on the 

 city lot, the principles governing its planting and care are the same 

 although the distances of planting, methods of tillage, and intensity 

 of cropping may differ widely. On the farm, the saving of labor is 

 more important than the saving of space ; even the small vegetables 

 are planted in long rows rather than in beds; and horse power is 

 substituted for hand power wherever possible. In the village and 

 the city, the vegetables must usually be planted as closely as the 

 nature of their growth will permit, and hand tillage employed 

 almost exclusively. 



Much loss of time in planting a garden can be avoided by 

 making a definite plan of the garden several weeks or even months 

 before the planting is to begin. After measuring the area to be 

 used for the garden, the next step is to decide what vegetables are to 

 be grown. If space is ample, this will be determined primarily 

 by the personal tastes of the gardener and his family. However, 

 if only a limited amount of time and attention can be given the 

 garden, it may be wise not to undertake the growing of some of the 

 more exacting crops. Whatever the space to be devoted to gardening, 

 the crops to be grown should be decided upon long before the time of 

 planting. 



In planning the garden, it is well to arrange the vegetables 

 in the order in which they are to be planted. This facilitates the 

 preparation of the land for planting, and makes it possible to 

 maintain the implanted portion in a good friable condition with 

 the least expenditure of labor. In order that the vegetables may 

 be so arranged, it is necessary to know the proper time for planting 

 each crop. This depends primarily upon the temperature and 

 moisture requirements of the particular crop in question. 



If any of the small fruits, such as raspberries, currants, and 

 gooseberries, are to be planted within the garden enclosure, they 

 should be included with the permanent crops. The area devoted 

 to the hotbed, cold frame, and seed bed should be decided upon, but 

 these may be shifted more or less from year to year or located in some 

 convenient place outside of the garden. Where there is any great 

 variation in the composition of the soil in different parts of the 

 garden it will be advisable to take this into consideration when 

 arranging for the location of the various crops. If a part of the 

 land is low and moist, such crops as celery, onions, and late cucum- 

 bers should be placed there. If part of the soil is high, warm, and 

 dry, that is the proper location for early crops and those that need 

 quick, warm soil. 



In planning the location of the various crops in the garden, 

 due consideration should be given to the matter of succession in order 

 that the land may be occupied at all times. As a rule it would not 

 be best to have a second planting of the same crop follow the 

 first, but some such arrangement as early peas followed by celery, 



