CUCUMBERS. 67 



is, to get low land which can be drained on the one hand, 

 and flooded on the other. Ditches may be dug from the 

 main stream, two or three feet wide, and deep enough to 

 allow the water to flow in to the depth of two to six inch- 

 es. In these ditches sow or plant the water cress. For your 

 own use, cress can be obtained in ample abundance by 

 sowing it in any shallow natural stream. A convenient 

 plan is to scatter a little cress seed on the surface of the 

 water, and let it float down stream. When the stream is 

 once stocked nothing more is needed. It is a pity that 

 water cress is not better known and more generally used, 

 as it is one of the most healthful and delicious of salads. 



CUCUMBERS. 



Cucumbers, when grown in a hot-bed, will stand a 

 good deal of heat, and their successful management re- 

 quires some experience. It is usual to plant one hill of 

 cucumbers to each sash, after using the hot-bed for start- 

 ing other seeds in boxes, which can be removed when the 

 cucumbers require more room. For out-door culture, 

 early plants can be started in the hot-bed or in the house; 

 six or eight seeds can be sown in some fine mould in a 

 three-inch pot, and when the weather has become set- 

 tled, the plants can be carefully turned out of the pot 

 witli all the soil adhering to the roots, and transferred to 

 a well-prepared hill in the garden. For a few days, the 

 plants should be covered with a frame or bottomless box 

 having a piece of cotton cloth tacked over the top. 

 Before the plants are turned out, the pots should be 

 placed in a vessel containing some blood-warm water, 

 two or three inches deep, and allowed to remain until the 

 ball of earth is thoroughly saturated; this is far better 

 than watering after they are transplanted. 



Cucumbers delight in a warm, rich, mellow soil. For 



