326 



VEGETABLE GARDENING 



Celery commands a price of 10 to 75 cents a dozen 

 plants. Twenty-five to 40 cents is the usual range of 

 prices. Extensive commercial growers regard $100 an 

 acre as a fair net profit. Market gardeners usually do 

 much better than this. 



416. Insects. The aromatic flavor of celery seems to 

 serve as a repellent to insects, for this vegetable has no 

 serious enemy. The following insects are sometimes 

 troublesome: Grasshoppers, celery leaf tyer, celery 





FIG. 8l. TWO FORMS OF SWISS CHARD 



caterpillar, zebra caterpillar, tarnished plant bug, celery 

 looper, carrot rust fly and the little negro bug. 



417. Diseases. Several diseases of celery are some- 

 times serious. The most important are the blights 

 (Cercospora apii and Septoria petroselini, var. apii), leaf 

 spot (Phyllosticta apii), and rust (Puccinia bullata). Bor- 

 deaux mixture is frequently used for the control of celery 

 diseases. Some growers begin making applications in 

 the seed bed and repeat at intervals until blanching be- 

 gins. The early applications are doubtless most effective. 



