124 



^{)t farmer's iHontl)l|) Visitor. 



Cultivation of the Pea. 



The pea is a liaiily niiniial, a iialive of tlie 

 south of Kiiio|>e, cuhivated in Great JJiitaiii 

 from time iiniiieinorial, and in tliis country iVotn 

 its first settlement. 



Times of Sowing. — " Tlie dwarfs are generally 

 eniployud in hot-hed culture, which, however, 

 succeeds hadly, and is neither worth pre.serviii^' 

 nor descrihinj.', and the less so as eaily crops 

 may be more certainly had hy sowiiif; in the liill, 

 in sheltered situations, and coveririfr durin;,' the 

 winter with a layer of leaves, and another of 

 long stable-litter, loosely applied, to keep the 

 leaves in their places. After the earth takes a 

 temperature favorable to ve^'etation, your pea 

 sowings should he made ^nce a foitnight, to keep 

 up a regular and successive supply." — Armstrong. 



Q^unntily of Seed.— "OC the small, early kinds, 

 one pint will sow a row of twenty yards ; for 

 the larger sorts, for main crops, the same meas- 

 ure will sow a row of thirty-three yards." 



Process in Sowijig. — " For early sorts, make 

 the drills one inch and a half dee|) ; and let par- 

 allel drills be two feet and a half, three, or four 

 feet asunder. Peas that are to grow without 

 sticks require the least room. For sutnmer 

 crops and large sorts, make the drills two inches 

 deep, and four, five, or six feet asunder. As to 

 the distances along the drill, distribute the peas 

 according to their size and the season : the 

 frame, three in the space of an inch ; the Charl- 

 tons. Hotspur, and dwarf marrowfat, two in an 

 inch; the Prussian blue and middle-sized sorts, 

 three in two iuclies; the large marrowfat and 

 Knight's, a full inch apart; the moratto, rounci- 

 vals, and most larger sorts, an inch and a half 

 a[>art ; and the Patagoniau, two inches." 



Soil 071(1 Situation. — "The soil should he mod- 

 erately rich, atid the deeper and stronger for the 

 lofiy growers. Peas are not assisted, but hurt, 

 by mireduccd dung recently turned in. Afresh, 

 sandy loam, or road-stuff, and a little decompo- 

 sed vegetable njatter, is the best manure. The 

 soil for the early crops shonlil he very dry, and 

 rendered so, where the ground is moist, by mix- 

 ing sand- will) the earth of the drills." — Loudon. 



Armstrong says, "A loose and warm soil is 

 most liivorahle to this vegetable, which, by the 

 way, is neither improved in quality nor quantity 

 by stable manuie. The soil of Clichy, and of 

 Point de .lour des Columl)e, &c., in the tieighbor- 

 biiod of Paris, is a pme sand, principally devo- 

 ted to pea crops, and yielding these most abini- 

 dantly without the application of dung new or 

 old." 



Siihsequeni Culture. — " As the plants rise from 

 half an inch high to two or three inches, begin 

 to draw earth to the stems, doing this when the 

 groiMid is in a dry state, and earthing gradually 

 Iiigher as the stems ascend. At the same time, 

 with the hoe, loosen the ground between the 

 young plants, and cut down rising weeds. Ear- 

 ly crops should be protected during hard frosts 

 by dry straw or other light littpr, laid iqion slicks 

 or brushwood ; but remove the coveriiig as soon 

 OS the weather turns mihl. If, in April, May, 

 and the course of the sunnner, dry weather oc- 

 curs, watering will be necessary, especially to 

 plants in blossom and swelling lh(! li'uit ; and 

 this trouble will be repaid in the produce. Kows 

 partly cut off may be made up by transplanting. 

 Ill dry weather, water, ami in iiot weather, shade, 

 until the plants strike. All peas fruit better for 

 sticking, and continue longer prodtictive, espe- 

 cially the larger sorts. Stick the plants when 

 from six to twelve inches high, as soon as they 

 begin to vine. Provide branchy sticks of such a 

 height as the sort will recpiin; ; for the frame aiul 

 Loadmnu's dwarf, three feet high ; for the Carl- 

 ton and middle-sized, fo'M- or five fec^ ; for the 

 niarrowliit and larger kinds, six or eittht feet; 

 for the rouiu-ival, and for Knight's marrow-pea, 

 nine or htn feet. Place a row ol' slicks to each 

 liiK! of peas, on thi! most sniiiiy side, east or 

 nouth, tliat the attraclion of the sun may incline 

 the plants tovvarils the slicks. I'lace about half 

 the luimber on the opposite side, and let both 

 rows stand rather wider at top than at the groimd. 

 Some gardenias stop the leading shoot <d' the 

 most early crop when in blossom ; a device 

 which accelerates the setting and maturity of the 

 fruit. 



To forward mi enrly Crop. — "Sow or plant in 



lines from east to west, and stick a row of 

 spruce-fir [or other evergreen] branches along 

 the north side of every row, and sloping so as to 

 bend over the plants, at oi:e foot or eighteen 

 inches from the ground. As the plants advance 

 in height, vary the position of the branches, so 

 as they may always protect them from perpen- 

 dicular cold or rain, and yet leave them open to 

 the full influence of the spring siiii. Some cov- 

 er during nights and in .severe weather with two 

 boards, nailed together lengthwise, at right an- 

 gles, which forms a very secure and easily-man- 

 aged covering, but excludes light. A better plan 

 would be to glaze one of the sides, to be kept to 

 the south, and to manage such row-glasses, as 

 they might be called, when over peas, beans, 

 spinage, &c., as hand-glasses are manageil w hen 

 over caulifiower; that is, to take them ofi' in fine 

 weather, or raise them constantly or occasionally 

 by brickbats, or other props, as ihe weather and 

 the slate of the crop might require." — Loudon. 



Management of a lute Crop. — The best varie- 

 ty tor this purpose is Knight's marrow-pea, 

 which may be sown at intervals of ten days from 

 ihe beginning to the end of June. " The ground 

 is dug over in the usual vvay, and the spaces to 

 be occupied by Ihe future rows of peas are well 

 soaked with water. The mould upon each side 

 is ihen collected so as to form ridges seven or 

 eight inches above the previous level of the 

 ground, and these ridges are well watered. The 

 seeds are now sown in single rows, along the 

 lops of the ridges. The plants grow vigorous- 

 ly, owing to the depth of soil and abundant 

 moisture. If dry weather at any time set in, 

 water is applied profusely once a week. In this 

 way, the plants continue green and vigoious, re- 

 sisting mildew, .-ind yielding fruit till subdued by 

 frost." — Hort. Trans, vol. ii. 



To save Seed. — "Like other vegetables, the 

 pea is susceptible of considerable improvement, 

 and by the simple means of marking Ihe finest 

 plants of each variety, and keeping them for 

 seed. Wilson's frame and the Knight pea have 

 been tbrnied in this way, .-md afl^ord snflicient 

 proof of the wonders pioduced by a vejy small 

 degree of observation and care."- — Armstrong. 



Field-cidtii)-e nf the Pea. — The most couunon 

 mode ol sowing peas is broad-cast ; but the ad- 

 vantages of the row cultiue, in a crop so early 

 committed lo the ground, must be obvious. — 

 Loudon says, "In Kent, where immense quanti- 

 ties of peas are raised, both for gathering green 

 anti for selling ripe to the seedsmen, they are 

 generally sown in rows from eighteen inches to 

 three feel asunder, according to the kind, and 

 well cultivated between. Peas laid a foot below 

 the surface will vegetate; but the mosta|i|uoved 

 depth is six inches in light soil, and four inches 

 in clay soil ; for which reason they ought to be 

 sown imder finrow when ihe ploughing is delay- 

 ed till spring. Of all grain, beans e.xcepted, they 

 lue in the least danger of being buried too 

 deep." — Loudon. 



Deane observed, that "for field pens, land that 

 is newly ploughed out of sward is generally ac- 

 counted best ; and land which is high and dry, and 

 has been not imich dunged. A light, loamy .soil 

 is most suitable for them ; and if it al)ouiid with 

 slaty stones, it is the heller. But lliey will do in 

 any dry soil. The manures that suit peas best are 

 mail and lime. Our (iuiners do not commonly 

 allow a sufilcieut tpiantity of seed fiir peas, in 

 broad-cast sowing. When peas are sowed thin, 

 the plants will lie on the ground, and perhaps 

 rot; when they are thick, Ihe plants will hold 

 each other up wiih iheir tendrils, forming a con- 

 linued web, and will have more benefit of the 

 air." 



Insects and Diseases. — The Mas.sachiisetls Ag- 

 ri(Mdiural Keposiiory, fi)r June, 183'i, contains 

 some remarks of the lion. 'I'. I'icki'ring. relatives 

 to a hug or lly, which preys on the pea, in which 

 lie observi'S, that an efieclual lemedy (or this 

 evil is tale son-ing ; but the hot sun of .lune will 

 so pinch the vines of the late sown peas, that Ihe 

 c-rop will be small, indess Ihe land be moist as 

 well as rich. He then details some experiuK'Uls, 

 by which he concludes that this insect is limited 

 lo a certain period Ibr depositing its eggs ; anil 

 if I he tender pods are not fomid till that period 

 has passed, the peas will be free from bugs. — 

 Culoiiel Worlliingtou, of Keiisselaer county, 

 New York, "sowed his peas on the lOtliof June, 



six years in succession, and a bug has never 

 been seen in his peas ; whereas his neighbors, 

 who have not adopted this practice, have scarce- 

 ly a pea wiihoul a hug in it. He supposes the 

 season for deposiling the egg of the pea-bug is 

 passed before the peas are in flower." — Memoirs 

 of JVeu: York Board of .igricutture, vol. ii. p. 23. 

 "The only insect that commonly injures our 

 peas is a small brown bug or fly, the egg [or lar- 

 va] of which is deposited in ibein when ihey are 

 young, and the pods easily perforated. The in- 

 sect does not come out of its nest till be is fur- 

 nished with short wings. They diminish the 

 peas in which they lodge nearly oiie-Iiulf, and 

 their leavings are fit only for the food of swine, 

 'i'he bugs, however, will he all gone if you keep 

 them to the following autumn. But they who 

 eat buggy peas the winter after they are raised, 

 must run the venture of eating the insects." — 

 Deane's .Veto England Farmer. 



The same writer recommends, when seed peas 

 are known or suspected to contain insects, to 

 scald them a quarter of a minute in boiling wa- 

 ter, spread tlieni about, and sow them without 

 delay. If any of the bugs should be in the peas, 

 this scalding will destroy them : anil the peas, 

 instead of being hurt, will come up the sooner, 

 an<l grow the faster. 



Mildew is another evil attending peas, espe- 

 cially such as are sown late in the season. This 

 disorder is supposed by Knight to be caused by 

 " a want of a sufficient supply of nioisiuie from 

 the soil, with excess of humidity in the air, par- 

 ticularly if the plants be exposed lo a tempera- 

 ture below that to which Ihey have been accus- 

 tomeil." The remedy which he recoinmenils is, 

 to "give water rather profusely once a week, or 

 nine days, even if the weather proves showery." 



IZsf.— The use of peas for soups and other 

 culinary purposes is well known. They are like- 

 wise very serviceable in fiittenini: hogs, liir which 

 purpose they should be harvested dry, and ground 

 into meal. If the straw be forward in autumn, 

 and has been harvested without injury, it will ha 

 little inferior to ordinary hay for 1'eediug cattle. 



" In boiling split peas, some sami)les, without 

 reference to variety, fall or moulder down freely 

 into pulp, while others contiime lo maintain their 

 form. The former are called boilers. This 

 properly of boiling depends on ihe soil : stiff 

 laud, or sandy land that has been limed or marl- 

 ed, uniformly produces peas that will not melt 

 in boiling, no matter what the variety may be." 

 — Loudon. 



" When peas are sown before winter, or early 

 in spring, they are very iipt lo be eaten by mice. 

 To prevent this, soak the peas for a day or two 

 in train oil before you sow them, which will en- 

 courage their vegeiaiion, and render them so ob- 

 noxious lo the mice thai they will not eat them." 

 — Domestic Knctjclopedia. 



Cultivation of the Beau. 



Loudon gives the following directions for the 

 culture of runners, or pole-beans, as they are 

 commonly called in ihiscoimtry: — The ruuiier 

 kidney beans may be s.iwn in a small portion 

 towards the end ol' April, [about the middle of 

 May in New Ensland,] if tolerably warm, dry 

 weather; but as these beans tue rather more ten- 

 der than the dwarf sorts, more liable to rot in 

 the ground by wet and cold, especially Ihe scar- 

 lets, the beginning or middle of May [first of 

 June in New I'liglaiul] will be lime enough lo 

 sow a considerable crop ; anil you may sow a 

 full crop about the boginniug of June. Allot 

 principally the scarlet ami large while runners. 

 SiMiie Dutch runners are very eli:;ible as a sec- 

 (Unhuy crop. The first crops should have the 

 nssislaiice of a south wall. luleruu'diate crops 

 may be sown in any open comparlment, or 

 against any fence not looking north. The latest 

 sown will continue healing longer under a yood 

 aspect ami shelter, lii sowing, draw drills about 

 an inch and a half, or not more than two inche.s 

 deep. Lei parallel rows be at least four feet 

 asunder, to admit ni the intervals tall slicks or 

 poles for the plants to clind) on. Place the 

 beans in the drills lour inches apart, and earth 

 them in evenly the depth of the drills. A row 

 contiguous lo n fence or building may ascend 

 upon lines. Some may he sown in a single row 

 along a border, or on each side of a walk, and 

 have the support of a slight trellis of laths and 

 lines; or they might be niched over with similar 



