148 A YEAR'S WORK IN THE VEGETABLE GARDEN 



SPINACH may be sown in open quarters. If the frost destroys 

 the plant, sow again. Some risk must be encountered for an early 

 dish of this highly-prized vegetable. The autumn-sown Spinach 

 must be kept clear of weeds, and in gathering (if it happens to be 

 fit to supply a gathering) pick off the leaves separately with a little 

 care. 



TOMATOES have ceased to be a luxury for the few, and have be- 

 come a necessity among all classes of the community. Concurrently 

 with its increase in popularity, the fruit has been developed into 

 many beautiful forms, differing in flavour and in the time of ripening. 

 Of the immense value of the Tomato as an article of diet we need 

 say nothing, but we may confidently affirm that its merits for 

 decorative purposes have not as yet been fully recognised. We have 

 seen long racemes of bright vermilion fruit employed with striking 

 effect in epergnes, and there is a natural fitness in using them for 

 decorating the dinner table. All the Tomatoes can be grown and 

 ripened under glass in almost any fashion which may suit the 

 cultivator's convenience. Pits, frames, vineries, and Peach houses 

 will all bring the fruit to perfection, either in pots or planted out. 

 Magnificent crops are also grown in the manner usual with 

 Cucumbers, but in a lower temperature; and those who have an 

 early Cucumber house at liberty later in the year may turn it to good 

 account for Tomatoes. The soil for them should be prepared and 

 laid up in the autumn. It must not be too rich, or there will be 

 much foliage and little fruit, and the flowering will also be late. A 

 compost of leaf-mould and loam with an addition of sand will suit 

 Tomatoes admirably ; but raw manure should be regarded as poison. 

 Sow thinly in well-drained pots firmly filled with soil. Barely cover 

 the seediwith fine earth, and place the pots in a temperature of 60 

 or 65. When large enough to handle, transfer the seedlings to small 

 pots, and, if necessary, shade them for a few days. Keep them near 

 the glass until the roots are established, and allow them to suffer no 

 check from first to last. 



FEBRUARY 



THE work of this month is to be carried on as weather permits, but 

 with greater activity and more confidence, for the winter is, we hope, 

 pretty well gone. Earnest digging, liberal manuring, and scrupulous 

 cleansing are the tasks that stand forward in the work of the month 



