122 The Profitable Culture of Vegetables. 



one of brushwood, as depicted below. This acts in a similar 



Tilted Cloche. 



Brushwood Screen. 



manner to the lath screen, but is not so convenient to remove 



and replace. Either of the above methods are much better 



than laying brushwood or litter directly on the soil, as the 



seedlings are not so liable to become drawn, nor the bed foul 



from lack of weeding. Another very 



successful method of raising small 



seeds is to cover them with cloches. 



These can be tilted for air, always with 



the raised part on the side opposite to 



to that from which the wind is blowing ; 



they may be whitened on one side to 



break the sun's rays, or covered with 



mats to protect from frost. 



Seeds which germinate very slowly, such as parsnips, carrots, 

 onions, and the like, when sown in the open ground should have 

 mixed with them a few quickly-germinating seeds, such as 

 radish or turnip. These serve to mark the rows, so that the 

 soil may be hoed and stirred about before the main-crop seeds 

 are up, and so prevent weeds from getting too far ahead. In 

 this way a catch-crop of radishes can be obtained before they 

 inconvenience the main crop. 



For main crops the seed should always be sown in long 

 lines the full length of the plot. This will greatly enhance 

 the ease and efficiency of cultivation, by allowing a wheel-hoe 

 or horse-hoe to pass along the rows easily. If the rows are 

 too long for one kind of vegetable two or three different 

 kinds may be put in the same row, providing the combination 

 is of varieties requiring the same general treatment and length 

 of season. 



Thinning Out. Having sown a liberal allowance of seed 



