Cultural Directions. — 225 



An outline of such bed is shown on the preceding page. 

 Fine compost is then apphed to the depth of several inches, and 

 spaded or forked into the soil, after which the plants are set in 

 rows one foot wide across the bed, and 6 inches apart in the 

 rows. This is crowding the plants so closely together that they 

 will grow pretty nearly upright without handling. They will 

 need hoeing once or twice, 

 and in a dry time can easily be 

 watered, or provided with half 

 shade, since the area is so 

 ridiculously small for the num- 

 ber of plants. For convenience 

 in earthing-up, two boards each 

 10 inches wide, and 7 or 8 feet 

 long, with ends tapering for a 

 handle, are set up on edge 

 between two rows of plants, 

 one to each side, as shown to 

 the right of illustration. Pegs 

 driven into the ground on the 



outside at each end hold the boards 

 in position. The space between 

 them is then filled up with soil 

 from the alleys. This work — and 

 earthing-up celery generally — can 

 be done to best advantage by two 

 men, one standing at each side of 

 the bed. When the space is shov- 

 elled level full, each man grasps 

 the boards by the handles on his 

 side and presses the upper ends 

 together with a few smart raps, 

 then proceeds to take the boards 

 out, and to insert them in the next 

 row. Thus the soil is left in a sort 

 of ridge between each two rows of 

 plants, and the handling is done afterwards by hand in the usual 

 manner. The boards are then again brought into use in same 

 way, and the process of earthing-up continued as needed. For 

 winter protection the whole bed is covered up with a thick 

 and well-rounded layer of earth, and further protected with 

 15 



Crawford's Half-Dwarf. 



