1896.] ESSAYS. 85 



may ho firown without l)usluii<i-, tlie pods are of good sijje and the peas 

 are ivinarkaltl}^ sweet and tender. Where the room is limited tlie 

 American AVonder will be found desirable, as it can be planted close, 

 being very dwarf, and is of line (|uality. For late peas the Champion 

 of England. 'rele])hone and Heroine are among the best. Beets are a 

 very desirable crop, and have come to be al)out as staple as potatoes. 

 There are a great many varieties, but none better for the first crop 

 than the Crosl)y Egyptian, being very early, of good shape and dark 

 color. The .Surin'ise is a new beet, but which I tried last season with 

 very satisfactory results ; it is the most rapid growing beet I have ever 

 seen, is good shape and of line quality, but is light colored. As a 

 rule the light colored ones are the sweetest, but there is a great deal in 

 looks, and when we have beets we prefer to have them "red as a 

 beet." For the fall and winter crop the Edmands and Dewings are 

 the best. No garden would be complete without a good supply of 

 wax beans, and here I should discard the large, flat-pod varieties that 

 are most profitable for market, and grow the round-pod black-wax, 

 they being of better quality. For later use plant the black-wax pole, 

 which is by far the best of all the wax beans I have ever tasted. For 

 shell beans, the bush Horticnltural and Rhode Island half-bush for 

 early, and the pole Horticultural, Concord and Lima for late. The 

 Concord, though not as attractive in appearance as the Horticultural, 

 is of better quality. Cucumbers are highly prized in the heat of 

 midsummer, and there is no better variety for home use than the white 

 spine, the favorite market sort. These should not l)e planted till 

 toward the last of May, when the ground has become warm and dan- 

 ger of frost is over. They may be had by planting them in pots early 

 in May and transplanting them to the garden the last of May or fore- 

 part of June. Water them well l)efore transplanting and they can be 

 taken from the pots without injury, and if transplanted in a bright, 

 warm day, shading them for a little while in the middle of the day for 

 a few daj's there is Ijut little danger of losing them. Never transplant 

 cucumbers on a cool, cloudy day. Pickles are highly prized in every 

 family, and the Boston pickling cucumber is the best for this use. Of 

 late there has Ijeen consideraljle trouble in growing this crop, which 

 used to be a very sure one. I have never tried spraying the vines, nor 

 have I known of anyone who has been successful in doing so. My 

 experience and observation liave taught me, that the troubles, what- 

 ever they may be, usually come on early in September (sometimes 

 earlier) . To insure a crop I would plant them early enough (say by 

 the 15th or 20th of June) so as to get the crop before Sept. 1st. 

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