198 MAKING HORTICULTURE PAY 



They run a much smaller number to the bushel, 

 are much easier harvested and delivered, and natu- 

 rally yield more pounds to the acre than the first 

 grades, so the difference in net returns is not great. 

 Most factories will use only a limited amount of the 

 seconds, thus forcing the farmers to raise the first 

 grade. 



" To undertake to estimate a yield is very much 

 like guessing on a horse race. One can always be 

 much more sure of his statements after harvest.^ 

 But to give plenty of range I should say that from 

 100 to 500 bushels to the acre would be a fair 

 figure. Of course there may be fields that will 

 not come up to 100. 



" If a man contemplates planting a cucumber 

 crop for the pickle factory, he will find that the cul- 

 tivation will be very easy, but he must be prepared 

 for a rather strenuous job of harvesting. How- 

 ever, the average man is not prone to complain 

 because his harvest is large. 



''Cucumbers may be pickled at home almost as 

 well as in the factory. The process is simple and 

 can be easily learned. The work will, of course, 

 be on a smaller scale, but the profits are large as 

 soon as a market is found for the finished product. 

 The same system of picking and grading prevails 

 whether the pickling is done in the factory or at 

 home." 



EGGPLANT 



The seed of this plant is sown earlier than tomato 

 seed, because the seedlings are rather slow grow- 

 ing. Usually it is started in the hotbed or green- 

 house and planted 2 feet apart in rows 3 feet apart 

 after the ground is thoroughly warm in the latter 

 part of May or early June. Fruit can be expected 



