50 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



The poles must be firmly set in the ground before the beans are 

 planted, and the earth slightly raised about them ; the seed should 

 be covered two inches deep. 



If the ends of the runners of some of the later sorts are pinched 

 off when they have reached four or five feet in height, it will 

 hasten their ripening. Limas and Sievas, being ver3" tender, 

 should not be planted before the ground is very warm and mellow 

 — say about June 1. One quart of pole beans will plant about 

 150 hills. The Large White Lima, Sieva or Small Lima, and 

 Pole Horticultural, are the best shell beans, while the Black Wax 

 Pole or Indian Chief is an excellent snap or string bean. It has 

 been my custom to grow the pole varieties for shell beans, and 

 to depend upon the bush sorts for snap beans, as the dwarf kinds 

 are far superior to the pole varieties as far as string beans are 

 concerned. One row of pole beans will be found sufficient for 

 our wants, and suppose we divide this row between the Limas 

 and Pole Horticultural. 



Bush, or Dvtarf Beaks. Bush beans are somewhat hardier 

 than pole beans, but they should not be planted until the weatlier 

 becomes settled. All beans do best in warm, light soil, but will 

 flourish in almost any soil or situation unless it be shaded or very 

 wet. Plant in drills, from three to three and a half feet apart, 

 and cover the same depth as for pole beans ; one quart of seed 

 will plant about one hundred and twenty-five feet of row. 



The Early Yellow Six Weeks and Dwarf Horticultural are the 

 best green-podded string or snap kinds ; and for yellow varieties 

 the Golden, White, and Black Wax take the lead. We must 

 arrange for a bountiful supply of string beans for our table, so 

 let us plant two rows and divide them in some such way as 

 this : Half a row of Early Yellow Six Weeks and half a row 

 of Golden Wax, planted say May 20; then wait until June 10 

 and plant another half-row of Golden Wax and half a row of 

 Dwarf Horticultural, which last named variety, if not needed as a 

 snap bean, can be allowed to ripen and become a most excellent 

 shell bean ; in fact, one of the best. 



Peas. Peas are eaten b}' every one, and are so much liked that 

 they are almost always placed first upon the list of vegetables 

 to be planted in the family garden, and it is almost impossible to 

 grow too many of them. To have a good succession of peas for 

 the table from the 17th of June until the middle of July or the 



