108 



VEGETABLE GARDENING. 



in pots or in boxes in hotbeds and in this way advance the 

 period of ripening- two weeks or more. This is a very desir- 

 able practice with pole Lima beans in this climate, since the 

 short season often fails to mature much of the crop when the 

 seed is planted in the open ground. The varieties of pole 

 lima beans best adapted to this section are probably the Large 

 Lima and Dreer's Lima: both of these are of fine quality and 

 productive. The small Lima or Sieva bean is earlier than 

 those mentioned but of inferior quality. 



Preserving Beans in Salt. — String beans are easily preserved 

 for winter use in salt, using about seven pounds to the bushel 



of pods. In doing this the fresh 

 tender pods are put at once into the 

 brine as they come from the field. 

 When wanted for use, they should 

 be freshened out and cooked in the 

 ordinary way. They are very good: 

 in fact, they are nearly as good as 

 the best canned beans. 



Diseases and Insects. — Beans are 

 quite free from the attacks of any 

 injurious insects or diseases. An- 

 thracnose of the bean {Gloeosporium 

 Lindennthianum) shows itself by 

 black spots on the stems or pods 

 or both. It is sometimes very in- 

 jurious in moist weather, but only 

 in occasional years have we any- 

 thing to fear from it. It is not gen- 

 erally considered profitable to use any of the fungicides, such 

 as Bordeaux mixture, which would readily prevent it. 



Fi£ 



48.— Anthracnose of 

 bean pods. 



BEETS. {Beta vulgaris.) 



Native of Europe. — Biennial. — This plant in the first year 

 •of its growth forms a fleshy root, and goes to seed the second 

 year. The seed stalk is about four feet high. What is usual- 

 ly sold and planted as beet seed is in reality a fruit and is 

 made up of several seeds imbedded in the cork-like calyx ; the 

 seed itself is very small and kidney shaped, with a thin brown 



