276 THE CULTURE OF VEGETABLES 



choose his own kind and plant what his gardening conditions will 

 permit, or his market demands. 



Beans require good soil, and deep, thorough cultivation before 

 planting. Subsequent tillage should not disturb the roots. Dwarf 

 string beans are very easily grown, and are probably found in 

 every garden of any size whatsoever, in every section of the coun- 

 try. They are planted in drills or in hills, the rows being far enough 

 apart to allow horse cultivation. 



Pole varieties require support and are for this reason often 

 planted with corn. 



Limas (Fig. 184) require even better soil than other varieties, 

 and being a little less hardy should be planted two or three weeks 

 later in the spring. Where earliness is very much desired, Lima 

 beans may be transplanted. 



The varieties grown for winter use in the dry state are usually 

 grown as a field crop, and sown with a grain drill. They are usually 

 white seeded varieties, heavy yielding, and maturing evenly. They 

 may thus be thrashed by machinery. 



Beans belong to the legume family, and are one of the so-called 

 ''meat substitutes," being rich in protein. They form a valuable 

 article in the diet and should be used freely in place of meat. 



Corn Directions for the growing of field corn are given in 

 another chapter. The culture of sweet corn is quite similar. In 

 order to have roasting ears continuously after the first harvest, 

 it is advisable to make plantings about two or three weeks apart. 

 At the first planting time it is a good plan to start with about three 

 different varieties which mature in different lengths of time. A 

 good selection of sweet corn would be: (a) Golden Bantam or 

 Peep of Day. (b) Country Gentleman or Hiawatha Sugar, (c) 

 Stowell's Evergreen. Two or three plantings of a variety from 

 each of these three groups should produce a succession of crops 

 to last throughout the roasting ear season. For those who desire 

 very large ears with little sugar, a succession can be made by using 

 Extra Early Adams and Early Adams, each being planted several 

 times to produce a succession. 



Roasting ears are badly affected with the corn ear worm. Where 

 this insect is troublesome, varieties should be selected which have 

 long husks covering the tips of the kernels. This never serves as 

 a complete protection against the worms, but will help. Rotation 

 of crops and fall plowing are standard methods for combating 

 this insect. 



