io6o 



Gardening for Amateurs 



Home-grown Vegetables 



THERE are several points to consider 

 well before the work of forming a 

 kitchen garden is commenced. The 

 question of soil is of the first importance. 

 The best kind is moderately heavy loam 

 at least 12 inches deep, though the deeper 

 the better. But let us hasten to add, 

 for the satisfaction and encouragement of 

 those who have to be content with com- 

 paratively poor ground, on which the surface 

 soil is fairly good, that excellent crops can 

 be grown there if deep cultivation and judi- 

 cious manuring are practised. Many soils 

 are efficiently drained naturally ; indeed, 

 .some land is over-drained, to its detriment, 

 such, for example, as that having a sandy 

 or gravelly subsoil, through which moisture 

 passes freely. But in the case of heavy 

 clay soil which becomes wet in winter 

 artificial drainage is necessary. The method 

 of draining land is shown on p. 109. 



Shelter and Site. The best kind of 

 shelter for a kitchen garden is a high wall, 

 say 10 to 12 feet high. This is, of course, 

 valuable also for the cultivation of choice 

 hardy fruits ; but walls are expensive to 

 build, and the next best shelter consists of 

 trees, high banks, or hedges. Shelter is most 

 essential from the north, north-east, and 

 east. If the choice of a site is available, select 

 that which slopes to the south or south-west, 

 or one facing south-east is suitable, for it 

 obtains the benefit of the early morning sun. 

 But a full east aspect is to be avoided on 

 account of cold winds and frosts, which are 

 inimical to the growth of early vegetables. 



If the garden is of fair size there should 

 be a central walk feet in width. This will 

 admit of manure and other heavy materials 

 being brought in, and crops and refuse mate- 

 rial taken out conveniently. Another walk, 

 4 feet wide, should be formed round the 

 garden at a distance from its boundary wall 

 or fence of 12 feet, and other cross walks may 

 be needed. In one corner of the garden there 

 should be a small yard hedged or fenced in, 

 to receive the garden refuse, where it may be 

 formed into manure either by burning or by 

 fermentation. A small shed ought also to be 



erected, which will serve the purpose of a 

 storehouse and tool shed, and near by a 

 few frames will be found both convenient 

 and useful. A small hedge surrounding the 

 shed and frames will effectually separate them 

 from the kitchen garden proper and improve 

 the appearance of the place. After the walks 

 have been made, hedges planted, or fences 

 formed, the next work to undertake is the 

 trenching of the ground, full details of which 

 are given elsewhere. This is rather heavy 

 and costly work to carry through, but it is 

 essential to the proper cultivation of vege- 

 tables. 



Rotation of Crops. It is not wise to 

 plant some crops in soil the first year after 

 the land has been trenched and manured, 

 but they will thrive splendidly the following 

 season without any further application of 

 manure. These crops consist of the follow- 

 ing : Carrot, Parsnip, Beetroot, Chicory, 

 Salsafy, and green crops intended to stand 

 the winter, such as Broccoli, late Brussels 

 Sprouts, Early Greens, and Spinach. Vege- 

 tables which luxuriate in deeply-dug, rich 

 ground are : Potato, Pea, Runner, French 

 and Broad Beans, Celery, Cauliflower, Cab- 

 bage, Leek, and Lettuce. 



Manures. If vegetables of first-class 

 quality are to be grown, then the manure 

 heap or its equivalent in artificial manure is 

 necessary. No manure gives such good results 

 as farmyard and stable manure. It may be 

 dug into the ground in autumn or winter in 

 a half-decayed condition ; if applied in 

 spring or summer it should be decayed before 

 use. Many amateurs have to rely chiefly 

 on the use of artificial manures. Vegetables, 

 as is well known, assimilate varied substances 

 from the soil. For instance, those which 

 develop chiefly leaf growth, such as Cabbage, 

 Spinach, and Lettuce, benefit most by nitro- 

 genous manures, such as nitrate of soda, sul- 

 phate of ammonia, nitrate of potash, and 

 guano. Vegetables grown for the value of 

 their roots and tubers, such as Potato, Tur- 

 nip, Radish, and others, need chiefly potassic 

 manures, such as sulphate and muriate of 

 potash and kainit. Those cultivated for 



