78 THE PLANTING OF SEEDS 



it is not necessary that there be sufficient distance between the 

 rows for the gardener to place his feet, as is necessary in outdoor 

 gardening unless the vegetables are planted in very narrow beds. 



If a wheel hoe is to be used in the tillage of a garden, the rows 

 of vegetables must be far enough apart to permit the free passage 

 of the tool as well as the operator's feet. Twelve inches between 

 the rows is a satisfactory distance for planting such crops as onions, 

 carrots, spinach, lettuce, early beets and other small vegetables 

 of which the seed is sown in drills. 



If horse tools are to be used in the tillage of these crops, more 

 space is needed between the rows. It is seldom wise to plant 

 any crops closer than two feet between the rows, if the tillage is 

 to be done by horse power, though some gardeners who have 

 small, well-trained horses or mules are able to cultivate between 

 rows planted as close as twenty inches apart. Corn, melons and 

 squashes require much more space, both for the proper development 

 of the plants and for convenience in tillage and harvesting. Water- 

 melons and winter squash require more space than any other vege- 

 tables and are often planted ten to twelve feet apart each way. 



Plants that are to occupy a given location a very short time, 

 under conditions where tillage is unnecessary for the maintenance 

 of moisture and where the seed bed has been very thoroughly 

 prepared previous to planting, may need no tillage, and hence 

 the seed may be sown broadcast. This is often done in the case 

 of seeds sown in flats in the greenhouse, where artificial watering 

 can be practiced, or in the case of radishes or leaf lettuce sown in 

 moist ground in early spring, or spinach sown during the rainy 

 season of autumn. 



The size of the plants in the same species may differ widely 

 with different varieties, and hence necessitates a variation in dis- 

 tance of planting. Summer varieties of radishes make much 

 more foliage than early spring varieties and hence need more 

 room. Dwarf peas may be planted much closer than tall peas, 

 dwarf early sweet corn closer than tall growing late varieties. 

 The size to which a plant of the same variety will grow also varies 

 with the soil and season. Rich soils are favorable to a luxuriant 

 growth of foliage, and hence may necessitate wider planting than 

 is ample on poorer soils. Some plants started late in the season 

 make a much smaller growth than those of the same variety 

 planted early. This is true of peas, kale, lettuce and other cool 

 season crops. The late plantings are likely to be overtaken by 



