1863. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



181 



RAISING- TOMATO PLANTS. 



A correspondent of the Gejiessee Fanner gave a 

 plan of raising early tomatoes in the house, which 

 a friend informs us he has tried with excellent re- 

 sults. It is simply to take some turnips, hollow 

 out the inside, and fill them with fine soil. Two 

 or three seeds are sown in each turnip, so as to 

 secure one good plant in each. The rest must be 

 pulled out. He usually puts the turnips in a box 

 ami fills the interstices with soil to keep them 

 steady and moist. He keeps the box in his kitch- 

 en. Of course, the plants should have all the 

 light you can give them, and should not be too 

 near a stove. The great difficulty in growing 

 plants in a room, is, that the atmosphere is too 

 dry. The leaves should be repeatedly sprinkled 

 with water, and the soil kept moist, but not lo" 

 wet. 



When the plants have attained a good size, and 

 the weather becomes milder, they should be 

 placed out of doors on warm days, and otherwise 

 '•hardened off" before setting out in the ground. 



The plants, turnips and all, are set out in the 

 ground without disturbing the roots. The shell 

 of the turnip soon decays, and the tomato grows 

 •'right along." — Exchange. 



fry the slices in batter, or in fresh butter in which 

 grated bread has been mixed ; season with pep- 

 per and salt, or sweet herbs, to suit. The seeds 

 require a good supply of moisture and a pretty 

 high degree of heat in order to make them ger- 

 minate. 



THE MARTYNIA, OR UNICORN PLANT. 

 This cut, as well as that of the Egg Viant, we 

 are permitted to use by the Publishers of JU'ru's 

 Fiehland Gardm Vc(jdahJes. Mr. Burr describes 

 it as a hardy, annual plant, with a strong, branch- 



AMERICAN PURPLE EGG PLANT. 

 Those persons who have eaten a slice of well 

 prepai-ed egg plant at the dinner-table, after a fore- 

 noon of exercise in the open air, will remember 

 its deliciousness, and thank us for presenting this 



beautiful engra^-ing. It should be started in a hot 

 bed, or may be successfully started in the kitchen, 

 in any box or pot that will hold the soil. From 

 the middle of May to the 10th of June, accord- 

 ing to location, the ])lants may be transplanted, 

 and ought to be protected a little for a few days 

 and nights, and then they will go on vigorously. 

 Thev require a light, generous soil and clean cul- 

 tivation. It has violet flowers in June and July, 

 which are succeeded by fruit resembling in size 

 and shape an ostrich egg, though it frequently at- 

 tains a size many times larger. 



In cooking them, the slices are cut transversely, 

 about half an inch thick ; press out as much of 

 the iuice as possible, and narboil ; after which. 



ing stem. The leaves are large, heart-shaped, 

 downy, and of a peculiar, musk-like odor, when 

 bruised. The flowers are large, bell-shaped, some- 

 what two-lipj)ed, dull white, tinged or spotted with 

 yellow and purple, and produced in long, leafless 

 racemes, or clusters ; the seed pods are green, 

 Tery downy or hairy, fleshy, oval, an inch and a 

 half in their greatest diameter, and taper to a long, 

 comparatively slender, incurved horn, or beak. 



The Martynia is of easy cultivation. The seeds 

 may be sown in .April or May, in the open ground, 

 where the jilants are to remain. 



The young pods are the part of the plants used. 

 These are produced in great abundance, and 

 should be gathered when about half grown, or 

 while tender and succulent ; after the hardening 

 of the flesh, they are worthless. They are used 

 for pickling, and by many are considered superior 

 to the cucumber, or any other vegetable employed 

 for that purpose. 



The Martvnia has another recommendation in 

 the pleasant — although somewhat odd — ap])ear- 

 ance it has in the garden. It requires considera- 

 ble room, because it branches out a good deal. It 

 has little resemblance to any other garden plant. 



Why are nails designated by the terms .sirpen- 

 ny, ei'ihipmiviy &c. ? In Sheffield, Enfrland. where 

 immense quantities of nails are manufactured, 

 thev used to be sold in small quantities by the 

 hundred ; and the terms /ourpeiini/,.vxpeinit^,S:c., 

 referred to such nails as were sold at fourpence, 

 sixpence, S^c, per hundred nails. The length of 

 the nails of that day was exactly the same with 

 nails that are now known bv those desijrnations. 



