160 THE COMPLETE FARMER 



Use. The use of peas for soups and other culinary pur- 

 poses is well known. They are likewise very serviceable in 

 fattening hogs, for which purpose they should be harvested 

 dry, and ground into meal. If the straw be forward in au- 

 tumn, and has been harvested without injury, it will be little 

 inferior to ordinary hay for feeding cattle. 



' In boiling split peas, some samples, without reference to 

 variety, fall or moulder dow^n freely into pulp, while others 

 continue to maintain their form. The former are called 

 boileij. This property of boiling depends on the soil : stiff 

 land, or sandy land that has been limed or marled, uniformly 

 produces peas that will not melt in boiling, no matter what 

 the variety may be.' — Loudon. 



'When peas are sown before winter, or early in spring, 

 they are very apt to be eaten by mice. To prevent this, 

 soak the peas for a day or two in train oil before you sow 

 them, which will encourage their vegetation, and render them 

 so obnoxious to the mice that they will not eat them.' — 

 Domestic Encyclopedia. 



BEANS. Loudon gives the following directions for the 

 culture of runners., or pole-heans, as they are commonly call- 

 ed in this country : — The runner kidney beans may be sown 

 in a small portion towards the end of April, [about the mid- 

 dle of May in New England,] if tolerably warm, dry wea- 

 ther ; but as these beans are rather more tender than the 

 dwarf sorts, more liable to rot in the ground by wet and cold, 

 especially the scarlets, the beginning or middle of May [first 

 of June in New England] will be time enough to sow a 

 considerable crop ; and you may sow a full crop about the 

 beginning of June. Allot principally the scarlet and large 

 white runners. Some Dutch runners are very eligible as a 

 secondary crop. The first crops should have the assistance 

 of a south wall. Intermediate crops may be sown in any 

 open compartment, or against any fence not looking north. 

 The latest sown will continue bearing longer under a good 

 aspect and shelter. In sowing, draw drills about an inch 

 and a half, or not more than two inches deep. Let parallel 

 rows be at least four feet asunder, to admit in the intervals 

 tall sticks or poles for the plants to climb on. Place the 

 beans in the drills four inches apart, and earth them in evenly 

 the depth of the drills. A row contiguous to a fence or 



