AMERICAN HOME GARDEN. 91 



five, with spaces between the so-called hills greater than would 

 be left if the plants stood in single line. " Hilling," there- 

 fore, in gardening, is opposed to " rowing," and may or may 

 not involve the idea of a raised mound of earth. 



The advantages of hilling are various. 



1st. Crops set or sown in hills, even when the earth is not 

 materially raised around the plants, are more easily tended 

 than in rows. 



2d. They are still more easily tended if the earth be so 

 raised ; the hilling-up from time to time enabling us to cover 

 and thus stifle the young weeds which must otherwise be re- 

 moved by hand. 



3d. In crops requiring poles, hilling has the great advan- 

 tage of one pole serving for several plants ; and in corn-crops, 

 the raised surface meets the strong stay-roots which are thrown 

 out from the lower joint of the stalk and braces it against the 

 wind, which in flat culture would be likely to prostrate the 

 crop. 



4th. All crops are probably benefited by some additions of 

 fresh earth around the plants during growth, supplying new 

 food to the young roots, which push rapidly into it, especially 

 after the growing crop begins to shade the, surface. 



Hills, however, should always be made broad and somewhat 

 flat rather than high and conical. The latter form throws off 

 the water from the plant, the former retains it, thus co-oper- 

 ating with and seconding the natural arrangement by which 

 each leaf of corn is made a groove or channel to convey moist- 

 ure to the stem and plant ; and each large leaf of the giant 

 pie-plant, being slightly incurved, is set to catch the falling 

 dew and rain, its stem forming the gutter by which it is car- 

 ried to the root ; and so of many other plants, with varied 

 adaptation to the same end. 



CROP PLOWING. 



In large or farm-garden operations, where the rows are wide, 

 much of the labor of cultivating crops in the progress of their 

 growth is performed with the small single or the half mould- 

 board plow, which are used in the ordinary manner of careful 



