MARKET GARDENING UNDER GLASS. 109 



before the time for planting, August 15th or September 

 1st, for example. For the second and third crops the 

 seed may be sown under glass in a corner of one of the 

 houses a month before the plants are wanted for setting 

 out. It is always a safe plan to sow an abundance of 

 seed, for very often a portion of the plants in the seed 

 bed meet with some mishap, cutting the supply short 

 when it is too late to replenish the stock in good time. 

 If the houses are kept at the proper temperature, the 

 first crop planted, say October 1st, will be ready for 

 market in seven to eight weeks from the time of plant- 

 ing. This will give an abundance of time to raise three 

 crops of lettuce between October 1st and the latter part 

 of March. This is allowing considerable margin for 

 harvesting eacli crop, and to make the necessary prepa- 

 rations for planting. This preparation of the beds for 

 the second and third crops is similar to the first, with 

 the exception that, if manure is applied freely for the 

 first, the soil will be rich enough to 'mature the three 

 crops without any addition, except, perhaps, a little 

 amrnoniacal fertilizer as a stimulant. This should be 

 scattered on and raked in during the preparation for the 

 second and third crops. The rapid and uniform growth 

 of lettuce depends largely on the quality of the soil in 

 which it is set, and the judicious management of the 

 house, in heating and watering. There is no use in 

 starting a crop under glass with poor, hungry soil ; there 

 should be no doubt on this question of fertility, for with- 

 out it all efforts at culture will fail. If the gardener has 

 a number of forcing houses under his control, he should 

 not plant too much of one kind at a time, but at inter- 

 vals of one or two weeks, so that his whole crop will not 

 mature at the same time, as it throws too much work 

 upon him at once, and possibly at an unprofitable period. 

 Instead of a third crop of lettuce, some gardeners sow a 

 crop of radishes. As a rule, the receipts from a crop of 



