THE TOMATO 123 



manured in the winter, and allowed to settle down. 

 Then at the end of May or early in June, put the plants 

 out in rows two and a half feet apart, and eighteen 

 inches apart in the rows. Fix a stout stake four feet 

 in length at once to each plant ; it must stand a little 

 more than three feet out of the ground, and the stem 

 tied as growth proceeds. With all plants the pinching 

 out of side shoots must be rigidly enforced. Very 

 little water is needed in dry weather until some fruits 

 are set and swelling, and when they are colouring heavy 

 watering should be avoided. It is better to place a 

 mulch of long manure about the plants to check as 

 much as possible too much evaporation. It is some- 

 times wise with all Tomato plants to thin out the 

 weaker or more irregular fruits on the clusters to get 

 larger size into those that remain. Late fully grown 

 fruits will ripen if put on a warm shelf, and green 

 fruits make excellent preserve or pickle. 



Where wood or wire trellises are fixed across a 

 garden quarter Tomato plants put out twelve inches 

 apart against them on the sunny side are easily trained, 

 but unless there is some close backing, such as mat, 

 straw frames or corrugated iron plates, the plants do 

 not bear earlier than those tied to stakes. Good 



Outdoor Varieties are, for the open air, Earliest 

 of All and Magnum Bonum, of the corrugated form, 

 Conference, Sunrise and Duke of York (smooth round 

 fruit), Glory of Italy (plum-shaped with full clusters), 

 and the richly flavoured Golden Nugget, a small-fruited 

 and excellent variety for dessert. 



