No. 13. 



Celery. — Sugar Beef* 



213 



Celery. 



Varieties. — White Soli J — Rose Colored 



Solid — N^orth's Giant Red — Italian-— 



Celeriuc, or Turnep Rooted. 



Those who may want Celery for summer 

 use, should sow some seed of the VV^Iiite 

 Solid in a slight hot bed early in March, but 

 as plants raided in this way are ap to run to 

 seed, it is much better to' wait a fortnight, 

 and sow some in a Warm border. Tlie seed 

 for a general crop should be sovyn the last 

 week in March, or early in April, in low but 

 rich mellow ground; if it be sown in drills 

 half an inch deep, and raked in even, it will 

 produce strong plants by hoeing frequently 

 between the I'ows. 



The early sown plants should be picked 

 out into a nursery bed of rich earth as soon 

 as they are two or three incites long, there 

 to remain about a month, after which they 

 will be fit to transplant into the trenches. 



Choose for this purpose a piece of rich 

 ground, in an open exposure; mark out the 

 trenches by line, 10 or 12 inches wide, and 

 allow the space of three feet between them, 

 which will be sufficient for the early planta- 

 tions. Dig each trench a moderate spade 

 deep, laying the dug out earth equally on 

 each side, between the trenches; lay three 

 inches deep of very rotten dung in the bot- 

 tom of each trench, then pare tlie sides and 

 dig the dung and parings with an inch or 

 two of the loose mould at the bottom, incor- 

 porating all well together, and put in the 

 plants. Previous to planting, trim the top 

 of the plants, by cutting off the long strag- 

 gling leaves, and also the ends of their roots. 

 Let them be planted with a dibble, in single 

 rows, along the middle of each trench, five 

 or six inches between plant and plant, as 

 Boon as they are planted give them a plenti- 

 ful watering, and let them be shaded until 

 they strike root and begin to grow. 



The main crops may be planted in the 

 same way, but in trenches four feet distance 

 from each other, and an inch or two further 

 from plant to plant; or in beds made in the 

 following manner, which for the ease of pre- 

 serving tlie plants in winter, will be found 

 extremely convenient, besides a greater 

 (juantity can be raised on a given piece of 

 ground. 



Lay out the ground into beds of four feet 

 wide, with alleys between, of three feet; dig 

 the beds a spade deep, throwing the earth on 

 the alleys; when done, lay four or five in- 

 ches of good well rotted dung all over the 

 bottom of the beds, dig and incorporate it 

 with the loose earth, and cover the whole 

 with an inch or two of earth from the alleys ; 

 plant four rows in each bed at equal distances, 

 and from six to eight inches apart in the rows; 



after which, give them a plentiful watering 

 and shade them. ° 



Tlie plants must be hoed occasionally until 

 grown of sufficient size for earthing, which is 

 done with the assistance of boards, by layino- 

 i them along the rows, to support the leave's 

 ! while you are putting in the earth from the 

 I alleys, and removing them as you progress in 

 i the business. 



The eartliing should never be done when 

 the plants are wet, as this is apt to make 

 Celery rusty, but should be performed gra- 

 dually in fine weather as the plants progress 

 in growth, repeating the earthing every two 

 weeks, at which time care should be taken to 

 gather up all the. leaves neatly, and not to 

 bury the hearts of the plants. When they 

 are grown two feet liigh, and well blanched, 

 they are fit for the table. As Celery will grow 

 three or four feet high in one season, it will 

 be necessary to delay the planting of that 

 which is intended for winter use until the 

 latter end of July, but the trenches should 

 always be got ready soon enough, to avoid a 

 serious drought, which often delays the plant- 

 ings till too late in the season. The blanch- 

 ing of Celery for winter use may be delayed 

 until October. 



The Celeriac or Turnep Rooted, may be 

 planted either on level ground or in shallow 

 drills, the roots of it swell like a Turnep and 

 may be preserved in sand through the winter. 

 The French and Germans cut it in slices and 

 soak it a few hours in vinegar; by such sim- 

 pe preparation, it becomes as mellow as a 

 Pine Apple, and affords a delicious and very 

 nourishing repast. 



Sugar Beet. 



To the Kditorofthe Farmers' Cabinet. 



Having somewhere seen a recommenda- 

 tion to sow the seed of the Sugar Beet so 

 late as May, which I think is almost a month 

 too late, I will state how I raised a few last 

 year, some of which were very fine plants. 

 Having no room except in my garden, I dug 

 the land over, burying a little manure in 

 each trench as I went on. When I had 

 dug enough for one row, I stretched the 

 line across the bed, and set my boy to put in, 

 with a small setting stick, two or three pods 

 into holes at nine inches distance from each 

 I other. Then I dug again till I had done two 

 ] feet more, when we put in another row ; and 

 i so on tor ten short rows. This was done on 

 the 10th of April last; but in an early spring, 

 I think the firstof April would be late enough. 

 Tlie seeds nearly all came up, but a few of 

 the plants perished, and from what cause I 

 do not know, as I was busy with other things, 

 and did not notice them until it was time to 



