THE VEGETABLE GARDEN 365 



note any deficiencies in the appearance of the original fruit, many 

 labor under the delusion that any variety will answer for this pur- 

 pose. This is a mistaken idea, as quality in canned goods is now an 

 important factor, and it is quite as necessary that a good quality of 

 product should be used for canning as for growing for the early or 

 general market, although from the field side it is natural that ton- 

 nage should be a primary consideration. 



In the matter of varieties, as in the case of early tomatoes, too 

 much dependence should not be placed upon the name or upon the 

 fact that a neighboring farmer secures good results from a given 

 variety. There are so many variations in the character of soils, even 

 in the same locality, which exert an influence upon the size and 

 quality of crop that the best variety is usually one that is, in part at 

 least, developed by the individual grower. The main point is to 

 select varieties that produce large, smooth, solid fruits, which do not 

 remain green or crack on the shaded side near the stem. Those 

 which possess size as their chief characteristic are frequently of poor 

 quality, as they are likely to possess large seed cavities and to ripen 

 unevenly. 



The conditions in some sections are such as to prevent the can- 

 ners from making as much distinction between good and poor varie- 

 ties as they would like. Canneries are in a measure obliged to receive 

 all that come, unless they can control absolutely the land upon which 

 the crop is grown. The variation in the quality of the crops of dif- 

 ferent farmers will make a difference of from 25 to 40 cans on a ton 

 of fruit, or from 6 to 10 per cent a very considerable item. In good 

 seasons and with good fruit 400 cans may be regarded as the maxi- 

 mum number to be derived from a ton, though late in the season, 

 and with poor varieties, as already stated, the pack from a ton is very 

 much less. The interests of the grower and the canner are really 

 identical in this regard. An improvement in the quality of the fruit 

 will result in an improvement of the canned product and a consequent 

 increase in the price of both the raw and manufactured products. 

 Less expense is involved in growing suitable plants for cannery pur- 

 poses than for other crops. This is due to the fact that earliness is not 

 so important a factor as it is in the market garden crop. 



Fertilizing and Cultivating the Soil. In manuring and fertiliz- 

 ing, the character of the crop and the season of its growth should be 

 remembered. Hence, recommendations that were made for an early 

 crop do not apply in all cases except perhaps on the poorer classes 

 of soils. In the first place, the plants are not put in the soil until 

 summer, when the conditions are most favorable for the rapid change 

 of organic forms of nitrogen into nitrates, and thus, if the soil has 

 been manured or is naturally rich in vegetable matter, the additional 

 application of nitrogen in immediately available forms is not so 

 important. In the second place, the object of the growth is not early 

 maturity, but the largest yield of mature fruit. 



Setting and Cultivating the Plants. The plants should be set 

 from 4 to 4% feet apart each way and cultivation should begin 

 immediately. The first cultivation should be deep, in order to con- 



