MODIFYING THE SOIL 71 



Along through the summer there should be fresh supplies of 

 early cabbage, snap beans, sweet corn for roasting ears, okra, if 

 desired, later growths of beets, carrots and turnips. There should 

 be plenty of cantaloupes, water melons, cucumbers, peppers, toma- 

 toes and new Irish potatoes. 



Later in the fall we should have supplies of the summer vege- 

 tables for drying or canning. A number of the vegetables already 

 mentioned can be ready at this time. We should have winter cab- 

 bage, sweet potatoes, Irish potatoes and celery ready to go into 

 storage, and there should be late plantings of English garden peas, 

 lettuce, radish, spinach, and others. 



As winter comes on we may find the number of fresh vegetables 

 greatly reduced except in the extreme southern states. However, 

 there may be green winter onions grown from shallot bulbs, turnips, 

 kale and rape for greens, a number of vegetables in the coldframe, 

 such as turnips, lettuce, beets, carrots, etc. Celery transplanted 

 to boxes in the cellar may be fresh throughout the winter season. 

 An abundance of coldframe space or deep pits will add greatly to 

 the winter possibilities. 



GARDEN SOILS 



The home vegetable garden should have the best soil on the 

 place. Rich black loam is best. Any soil can be made rich and 

 black by the addition of enough vegetable material. This may be 

 applied in the form of barnyard manure. A number of applica- 

 tions of manure well turned under will improve almost any soil 

 and make it better for gardening. 



Best Type of Soil. — For most vegetables soil which has consid- 

 erable sand in its makeup is better than soils which are largely made 

 up of clay. Sandy loam is a soil which contains a larger propor- 

 tion of sand than clay loam. 



Sandy soils are more easily warmed, are better drained, will 

 respond to modifying treatment more quickly and produce ear- 

 lier crops of vegetables. 



Clay loams are colder, hold moisture better, hold plant food 

 better, are less responsive to liming and manuring, produce crops 

 later, but on the whole produce as much of most of the crops as do 

 the lighter soils. 



Modifying the Soil. — On farms where the most ideal garden 

 soils are not found they can be amended and made suitable for 

 gardening by the addition of organic material, by thorough, deep 



