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GARDEN TRACTORS 



FIT FOR FLORISTS 



Many florists and nurserymen have sought information regarding power 

 cultivators, or garden tractors, adapted to meet their needs. To answer 

 their queries and inform others in the trade of these labor-saving machines 

 and the makes found most satisfactory, this article has been prepared. 



LORISTS and nurserymen 



Fhave manifested much in- 

 terest in the power culti- 

 vators on the market which 

 are especially adapted to 

 their needs. There are now 

 several. The initial cost of 

 them is small, the price 

 being in the neighborhood 

 of from $17.1 to $225. Such 

 an investment pays rapid dividends, 

 not only in larger profits, but in 

 the saving of human energy, and it 

 is within the means of one who has from 

 one-half to ten acres of land under 

 cultivation. 



Save Man Power. 



The time-saving and labor-saving fea- 

 tures of such a machine are enough in 

 themselves to make the investment liigh 

 ly attractive. The rapiility with whicli 

 this little burden-carrier goes through 

 a patch makes it possible for the florist 

 to cultivate his entire cro]) more often; 

 he can plan and time his cultivating 

 work exactly in accordan(*e with the 

 needs of the plants and the texture of 

 tlie soil. Because of the increased 

 nmount of power and gre:iter freedom 

 of the operator,^ the hOes can be made 

 to dig deeper into the soil, not only 

 loosening it, but also permitting the 

 moisture to rise more rapidly from thf 

 subsoil; the roots are giv(>n more of :i 

 chance to breathe, and the soil is left in 

 a better condition to absorl) the moisture 

 created by the dew in the evening, while 

 the water from rains is prevented from 

 running off. The plants grow f.ist( r, be 

 cause the amount of ]ilant focxl released 



Using the;)Lawn Mower Attachment. 



is greatly increased and put into a more 

 available form to be assimilated bj' the 

 roots. The plants also find it unneces- 

 sary to send out so many rootlets in 

 search of moisture and their growth is 

 greatly enhanced thereby. 



With such garden tractors, or jtower 

 cultivators, as they are variously called, 

 one man can do as much work as four 

 men can do with hand wheel hoes, and 

 while this one man is at work, his 

 mind is entirely free to direct his at- 

 tention to the steering and operating 

 (if the hoes. "Rest" periods are elim- 

 inated, more ground is covered, better 

 work is done, the growth of plants is* 

 more even, insuring healthier ])lants and 

 better prices, and The wages of three 

 men are deducted from the expense 

 sheet, to say nothing of relieving the 

 workman of the back-breaking labor 

 which reduces efficiency. 



The machines can be used throughout 

 the entire growing season. Rome are so 

 constructed as to pass over plants 

 twelve to twenty inches high without 

 injury. The majority of them will strad- 

 dle 12-inch rows, permitting the opera- 

 tor to cultivate two rows at a time, 

 or they will work between 24-inch rows. 



Operating Cost Small. 



The jxiwcr is transmitted from the 

 engine to the traction wheels either by 

 tlie loose pulley and belt method, or by 

 means of a dutch, in the same manner 

 as the power is applied to the rear wheels 

 of an automobile. Both of these meth- 

 ods give the operator perfect control 

 of the machine at all times. The control 

 lc\crs arc placed upon the steering 

 liandles, in a convenient location, where 

 tllt■^• can lie regulated with ease and 

 •<p('»'d. The adjustments for the hoes 

 art' also in the steering handles. The 

 jKiwcr is supplied in some by a 2-cycle, 

 and in others by a 4-cycle, gasoline mo- 

 tor, developing from one to two horse- 

 jpower. In the 2-wheel type this is bal- 

 anced between the traction wheels; 

 where there is but one traction wheel, 

 the motor is swung inside it. Such a 

 ina(diine is economical in the use of fuel 

 and lubricant, ref|uiring about one gal- 

 lon of gasoline for Vvery four to ten 

 hours of ojH'ration, dejiending ujion the 

 condition of the soil. The texture of the 

 soil and the contour of the surface of 

 the ground over which the macliine 

 runs somewhat affect the working of 

 the machine. It travels at the rate 

 of from 100 feet to 2r)0 feet per min- 

 ute, or an average speed of two miles 

 |ier hour. 



The differential is an additional fea- 



ture of one of the machines. The 

 minimum time is required in turning 

 at the end of the row and the machine 

 is small enough so that it can be driven 

 as close to a fence as is desired, both 

 in planting and cultivating. Here an 

 additional saving is eflfected. Hereto- 

 fore the plants at the extreme ends of 

 the rows have always had to suffer, es- 

 jiecially where a fence was encountered, 

 l)ecause these plants were trampled down 

 by a horse in turning to go back on the 

 next row or they were abandoned to the 

 weeds. This waste is entirely eliminated 

 when the power hoe is used, as only a 

 space of thirty to thirty-five inches is 

 required to turn the machine. The 

 fact that some rows may be crooked 

 makes no difference in the effectiveness 

 of the Avork performed. 



Tools Adjustable. 



The tools are so adjusted on the frame 

 that they can be shifted in a little time 

 by the operator. In fact, he can go from 

 a cultivating hoe to a lawn mower in 

 less than five minutes. Any tool can be 

 attached in a short time, so that no 

 matter what is the nature of the job 

 to be done, there is a tool attachment 

 for that particular kind of work. It is 

 said of some makes that the machine 

 can even be set upon a base and 

 made to turn a grindstone, a bone- 

 grinding mill, a ]>umping jack, or it can 

 lie attached to a spraying outfit and 

 used in the field. In fact, almost any- 

 thing re()uiring power to drive it can 



Hoeing Texas Onion Seed Beds. 



