1892.] ESSAYS. 171 



when set ; stir the soil often to kill the weeds down and promote 

 the growth of celery, and draw no dirt to the plants till time to 

 bleach it. There is a great diversity of opinion in regard to the 

 best varieties to be grown. I know I difler widely from many 

 growers in regard to this and while I do not expect or seek to 

 gain converts to my opinion, I unhesitatingly say that for early 

 celery, the White Plume is the best for me to grow. I know 

 there is much prejudice against the variety, it is said to be tough 

 and stringy and generally undesirable, but I think it is mainly 

 due to the way in which it is grown. This variety is known as 

 one of the self-bleaching, and I judge by the looks of some that 

 it is allowed to bleach itself, and under these conditions no celery 

 can fail to be tough in texture and strong in flavor. It isn't pos- 

 sible to get something for nothing in growing celery any more 

 than it is in short term endowment orders. I have grown some 

 as good White Plume celery as any one and I have had some as 

 lamentable failures. When I have had the best it has been because 

 I fulfilled the requirements for success and when I have failed 

 it has been my own fault. To have well bleached crisp celery, 

 requires that the bleaching be done at the proper time and in the 

 proper manner. It must be bleached while it is making good 

 vigorous growth, if we wait till it has nearly done growing and 

 try to bleach that old growth we shall fail to get nice celery ; 

 there are diflerent methods of bleaching but none I believe that 

 is as good as the soil in which it grows. In all the kinds of vege- 

 tables there are a great number of varieties, always get the best 

 but do not think they grow alone, that you have only to get the 

 right variety to succeed. It is very much as it was with the man 

 who always had better hogs than his neighbors, and when asked 

 what breed they were, replied, " the swill pail breed." 



We hear much complaint about the poor market here in 

 Worcester and it is true there are a few weeks in mid-summer 

 that the demand is not very brisk ; but it is seldom that we can- 

 not sell all wc have at the market price and that ought to satisfy 

 all reasonable mortals. If prices are low at certain times they 

 are high at others, and until we come a good deal nearer than at 

 present to producing what is used here, we ought not to grumble 



