A YEAR'S CYCLE IN THE GARDEN 169 



higher than the ground level. Then place the 

 frames to give the ground a good chance to get 

 thoroughly warmed. If you haven't any frames, 

 do not try to grow melons in Long Island, or places 

 of similar latitude, because melons, without the help 

 of sash frames, do not ripen until the middle of 

 September. As the nights then get very cool the 

 melons lose their flavor, crack considerably and are 

 at the mercy of the melon blight. Build a few 

 frames; they will not cost very much. All you 

 require is a one-foot-square box nine inches high in 

 front and twelve inches in back, and a four-glass sash 

 to cover it. Old fruit baskets with the bottoms 

 carefully removed and a plate of glass substituted 

 will do at a pinch. Get the hills prepared early in 

 the month and the frames placed, and sow the seed 

 any time after the twenty-fifth. 



You can also prepare Lima bean hills now, but I 

 would not advise sowing until after May I. Dig 

 good deep hills for the Limas and add plenty of 

 manure to the soil. Mark off the row and place 

 poles by making good deep holes with a crowbar, 

 then dig around the pole and fill in with the soil 

 that has been removed, to which about one-third 

 manure has been added. I use a wheelbarrowful 

 to every three hills. 



Before setting plants of cabbage, cauliflower, 

 Brussels sprouts, leek, lettuce, etc., out in the open 

 ground, harden them off slightly. Start by having 

 a little air on the frame at night and keep gradually 

 increasing the amount until by the end of the month 

 the sash can be left off altogether. 



