OCTOBER: THIRD WEEK 273 



Celery. Such celery as is wanted for early use is blanched 

 in the field by drawing the earth up to the stalks in two or 

 three successive hoeings; by the use of boards; or by the 

 use of one of the convenient "celery bleachers" now on 

 the market. The latter are especially useful for the home 

 garden, where only a few stalks are wanted at a time. The 

 stalks should be blanched clear up to the foliage. That 

 part of the crop wanted for winter and spring use should 

 have the soil worked in about the stalks sufficiently to 

 hold them in an upright position. Upon the approach 

 of hard frosts, about November first, part of it may be 

 "trenched," or blanched in a long narrow ditch, dug in 

 some well-drained convenient position. It should be 

 about a foot wide and deep enough to take the celery plants, 

 standing on end as they grew, with the tips of the foliage 

 about level with the soil surface. It should be taken up, 

 roots and all, and packed in close in the trench. As hard 

 freezing weather approaches the tops should be covered 

 with meadow hay and boards to prevent freezing. This will 

 keep in good condition vmtil the advent of real winter 

 weather. 



The part of the crop wanted for winter and early spring 

 use should be taken up, before hard frosts, and stored in long 

 narrow boxes about a foot wide and deep enough to take the 

 plants upright, packed in snugly together. As in trenching, 

 the roots should be left on, and a couple of inches of moist 

 sand should be put in the bottom of each box. These boxes 

 may then be packed in a cold dark cellar, and the stalks will 

 blanch out by the time they are needed. Boxes of the re- 

 quired shape and size may readily be made from plain pine 

 boards, with a row of small holes bored in the ends of each 

 to serve as handles. Celery should be handled or stored 

 only when it is perfectly dry. 



Beets, carrots, and turnips and radishes will not 

 be injured by the first light frosts. Parsnips and salsify 

 (or oyster plant) may be left in the ground all winter, with- 

 out injury, but of course the bulk of these crops should be 

 taken up, as once the ground freezes, it is next to impossible 



