Market-Garden Crops 305 



has begun, and a similar dressing after harvesting has 

 ceased. These dressings should be cultivated into the 

 soil, unless immediately followed by rain, which will dis- 

 tribute the salt into the lower layers of soil. Plants of 

 this sort, from which only one crop can be secured, should 

 be stimulated to the largest possible production. 



Sweet corn. 



In the case of sweet corn, the early crop is usually the 

 most profitable. The recommendations that are made for 

 the fertilization of the field crop do not apply to this, be- 

 cause the object is not the matured crop, which makes its 

 greatest development in July and August, the most favor- 

 able season of growth, but the early green product, which 

 is often harvested before the field crop has fairly begun to 

 grow. This early and rapid growth, therefore, cannot be 

 attained by methods of fertilization suitable for the field 

 crop (Chapters XII and XIV) . It can be accomplished only 

 when an abundance of the mineral foods is present, and 

 when the nitrogen is in part, at least, in forms which may 

 be directly absorbed, as much growth must be made pre- 

 vious to the time that nitrification takes place in the soil. 



The large quantity of well-rotted manure which, until 

 recently, was practically the only manure used for this 

 crop, while extremely valuable, can be in part substituted 

 by a liberal dressing of the minerals, phosphoric acid and 

 potash, and further supplemented by nitrogen in readily 

 available forms. The use of 1000 to 1200 pounds of a 

 mixture composed of the following ingredients 



Nitrate of soda 200 Ib. 



Dried blood, 16% AM 100 Ib. 



Ground fish 200 Ib. 



Acid phosphate 1200 Ib. 



Muriate of potash 300 Ib. 



