210 CALIFORNIA VEGETABLES 



plants should also be hoed by hand two or three times. When the 

 ground is once more covered with vines weeds will make but little 

 headway, even Bermuda grass being effectually checked by the 

 dense cover. 



Imperial Valley Methods. Alfalfa land is preferred. It is first 

 plowed three or four inches deep, then about a month later is 

 plowed seven or eight inches deep. The "hard" finely divided 

 "gumbo" soil may produce larger crops if properly worked; but 

 the "soft" land in which more or less sand makes it more loamy 

 and warm, produces the earliest. 



Wide rounded ridges about eight feet from center to center 

 are made with narrow furrows between. The seed is planted half 

 way up one side of each of these. This puts the roots close to 

 irrigation but keeps the plants out of it largely, and spreads them 

 out to sun and air. On the early plantings, some of which are put 

 in late in December and early in January, a pointed cap of oiled 

 paper is placed over each hill as it is planted by hand to hold the 

 warmth of the ground and protect the seedling plants from frost. 

 Later plantings are done by machine and not covered with the 

 papers. 



The cantaloups are irrigated according to soil conditions. The 

 ground must not be dried very deep. In hot weather it dries enough 

 to walk on in the day. Water is not allowed to cover the seeds or 

 get around the plant stems. During picking especially, water is 

 applied every three or four days, the pickers walking on the ridges 

 when the furrows are wet. 



Three or four cultivations are all that can be given on account 

 of vine growth. To control aphis burn the plants on and all around 

 an infected area as soon as it is discovered, usually during pick- 

 ing time. 



Turlock Methods Early in January the land is plowed eleven 

 or twelve inches deep to get a soil reservoir for winter rains and 

 to turn under the manure, which is applied thinly all over rather 

 than heavily on a part each season. Strawy manure is likely to 

 "burn out the ground" in this sandy soil and should be worked in 

 well and deep. The next plowing is six or seven inches deep early 

 in March, just before planting time, which is about March 15 if the 

 soil is warm and the rains over. If rains crust the soil it must be 

 broken with a light spike harrow even if some plants are injured. 



It is customary to omit every ninth row for a driveway for con- 

 venience in picking season, but it may be better to plant all rows 

 and break driveways crosswise with a harrow, just far enough 

 apart, about 10 rods, so that a picker commencing at one drive 

 would pick a row and arrive at the next drive with his sack full. 

 It would be dumped there, and he would proceed on across the 

 field. In the old way the pickers climb over several rows to un- 

 load into crates in the drive. This damaged the vines, reduced the 

 later settings of melons, and wasted the picker's time. 



