FOR YOUNG GARDENERS. 33 



til they are set out. They should be set out in rows, 

 twelve inches apart, and twelve inches apart in the row. 

 The peppers will be ready to pick in about twenty weeks 

 after planting. 



Peas. Little Gem or any of the dwarf varieties; if 

 they can be planted against the fence, where they have 

 support, the Stratagem, Champion of England and Tele- 

 phone are among the best. The little Gem is one of the 

 best for the garden. Peas are raisedfor the peas which grow 

 in pods, and are best when they are about the size of buck- 

 shot. The land is prepared the same as for beans, except 

 that the trench is made four inches deep, instead of three, 

 and the peas are covered one inch. Leave the surface 

 above them about two inches lower than the surrounding 

 garden. When they come up, the ground is gradually 

 filled in until it is level. All of the dwarf varieties should 

 mature in from six to eight weeks after planting. Look for 

 the nitrogen traps on the roots. 



Potatoes. Potatoes belong to a different class of 

 vegetables, in that the part that is eaten is a tuber, a 

 thickened underground stem. The land is prepared by 

 making a trench four inches deep, and hoeing one-half 

 pint of commercial fertilizers into each ten-foot row. The 

 potatoes are cut so that there are two eyes to each piece. 

 Place these pieces ten to twelve inches apart in the trench, 

 and cover them about two inches. When the plants are 

 up, keep the ground well tilled about them, and as they 

 grow, heap up the soil, making a broad hill. Potatoes are 

 about the only plants that it is usually wise under ordinary 

 conditions to hill up. Watch for the potato beetle, which 

 should be killed as fast as found. Rows of potatoes, like 

 peas and beans, should not be closer than two to two and 

 one-half feet apart. Potatoes develop underneath the 

 ground; they are not roots, but tubers. The eyes correspond 

 to the buds that you find on stems above ground. They 

 contain a large amount of starch, and are used in starch 

 factories, as well as for table use. Always keep the ground 

 free from weeds and in a good state of tillage. 



