246 



CROPS THAT REQUIRE TRANSPLANTING 



Cultivation should begin as soon as the plants are set. The 

 early tillage should be deep and close to the plants, but the later 

 tillage should be more shallow in order to avoid injury to the roots. 

 The later the cultivation can be continued, the longer the picking 

 season is likely to last, except in seasons of abundant and well- 

 distributed rainfall. Some hand work close about the plants 

 early in the season will aid in giving them a good start, but if the 

 plants are set so as to be cultivated both ways, little hand work is 

 really necessary. 



Staking. — In some localities it is customary to support the 

 plants by means of stakes. A stout oak stake five feet long is 



Fig. 14S. — ^Transplanting tomatoes, Union County, Illinois. 



driven beside each plant. When the plant has reached a height 

 of fifteen or eighteen inches, it is tied to the stake by means of 

 soft, stout twine. The twine is first tied tightly about the stake 

 so that it will not slip; then it is tied loosely about the plant so 

 as not to bind and injure the stems as the plant increases in size. 

 When the plant has grown a foot or so more, it is again tied; 

 and a third tying is usually necessary when the plant has reached 

 nearly to the top of the stake. Sometimes a fourth tying is made 

 in the case of strong-growing varieties. 



Many other methods of supporting tomato vines have been 

 employed from time to time, but tying to a single stake, as above 



