236 | VINES 
60° and, as the plants grow, pot them on 
and gradually decrease the temperature until 
about the middle of May; the plants can be placed 
in a cold frame for the final hardening off. Ina 
week or ten days they can be planted out. While 
growing the seedlings in the house or frame, be 
careful to keep the foliage free from moisture 
at night, especially when they are subjected to 
cold air, as it might then lead to blight. Always 
afford the plants plenty of root room, for if they 
become pot-bound they soon grow hard and wiry. 
If the seed is sown by March 20, the plants, 
when ready for setting out, the end of May, 
should be in six-inch pots about one foot high, 
and just beginning to show flowers. 
The soil in which the tomatoes are set should 
be well worked and free from “‘green”’ or fresh 
manure, which would cause the plants to make 
rank growth and but little fruit. To get the 
best quality, you must stake the plants or train 
them to a trellis. A good, heavy stake for each 
plant is about the best method and allows the 
vines to be set two feet apart; but the training 
means lots of work. A triangular trellis, about 
four feet across at the bottom and four feet high, 
makes a good substitute, each side of the trellis 
supporting a row. In both cases, the plants 
