246 FIELD AND GARDEN PRODUCTS 



be hardened off before planting in the garden. By the process of 

 hardening off, the plants are gradually acclimated to the effects of 

 the sun and wind so that they will stand transplanting to the open 

 ground. Hardening off is usually accomplished by ventilating 

 freely and by reducing the amount of water applied to the plant 

 bed. The plant bed should not become so dry that the plants will 

 wilt or be seriously checked in their growth. After a few days it 

 will be possible to leave the plants uncovered during the entire day 

 and on mild nights. By the time the plants are required for setting 

 in the garden they should be thoroughly acclimated to outdoor con- 

 ditions and can be transplanted with but few losses. (F. B. 255; 

 U. Mo. Col. Ag. & Mech. Arts 33; N. La. 81; Kan. St. Ag. Col. 70; 

 S. Dak. 47; U. Idaho 17.) 



FRAMES USED IN TRUCK GROWING. 



Intensive gardening under sash or cloth covers has become one 

 of the most popular and, in certain localities where the conditions 

 are suitable, one of the most profitable lines of outdoor work. The 

 trucker and the market gardener of the present day have been com- 

 pelled by keen competition and a constantly increasing demand for 

 high-grade products out of season to provide special facilities for 

 increasing and improving the product, as well as to take advantage 

 of every favorable natural condition. Many localities are especially 

 favored with an abundance of sunshine at all seasons of the year, and 

 at the same time their climate, due to the influence of large streams 

 or near-by bodies of water, is mild and free from extremes of tempera- 

 ture. *In such localities it would be possible to grow lettuce, radishes, 

 and similar crops during the entire winter without protection were 

 it not for a few cold days and nights. A very slight covering or the 

 application of a small amount of heat will, as a rule, carry the plants 

 through in good condition. This industry may readily be combined 

 with regular truck farming, as it furnishes remunerative employ- 

 ment during the winter months. A comparatively small area is nec- 

 essary for the frames, but several times that acreage of land should 

 be available, so that the site of the frames may be changed every few 

 years to safeguard against diseases and insect injuries. 



Cloth-Covered Frames. The type of frame or bed varies with 

 the different localities and is ordinarily no more elaborate or expen- 

 sive than is necessary to protect the crops. In North Carolina and 

 South Carolina the type of frame generally used is that having for 

 the sides two lines of 12-inch boards set on edge and held in place 

 by means of stakes driven into the ground. The covering of cheap 

 unbleached muslin is supported on strips of wood 1 inch thick and 

 2 l /2 or 3 inches wide, which are raised in the center by being carried 

 over the top of a stake; the ends are held down by nailing to the 

 Bides of the bed. Most of these frames are temporary and are taken 

 apart and stored during the summer months. Before placing the 

 frames in position in the autumn the soil is plowed, thoroughly 

 fitted, and given a liberal dressing of well-rotted stable manure and 

 commercial fertilizers. The placing of the boards will cause some 

 trampling of the bed, and before putting in the ends and nailing on 



