SQUASHES. 183 



and plow should be set to work in the field. If it is 

 in a state of good cultivation, there is not much use 

 for a hoe ; the filling referred to before can be done 

 with a cultivator. If the season is dry, the top of the 

 soil should be stirred often to conserve the moisture. 

 During a drouth, the weeds should be jealously kept 

 down, as they are just so many leaks to moisture in 

 the soil. 



When the vines begin to "run" they grow very 

 rapidly some have been ascertained to grow fourteen 

 inches in twenty-four hours ; so the field should be 

 kept in the best condition before this time. It is a bad 

 practice to pick the vines up and turn them from their 

 course ; they are subsequently so easily broken up by 

 the wind that little or no fruit sets. 



When the price of land is high, squashes are planted 

 as a second crop, or at the edge of some other crop, 

 as corn. 



MARKETING. 



This crop is usually marketed in barrels or boxes. 

 While many acres have been grown in the South, it is 

 not a crop to be relied upon for profit. The gardeners 

 in the North are able to store and keep their fall crop 

 over winter, so it will be late in the spring before there 

 is great demand for the Southern grown produce. It is 

 a good crop, however, to raise for home market, and 

 they are so easily grown that every farmer or gardener 

 can have them for family use. 



The seed does not remain good as long as that of 

 cucumbers, but it has been known to be vital at six 

 years old and again spoiled at three. The best way 

 is to test it before planting. 



For many uses in the kitchen, this crop can be 

 evaporated or it can be canned ; the business has now 

 grown to large proportions. 



