TOMATOES. 241 



they run too mucli to vines ; and although, taking 

 the season through, there will be more fruit, it comes 

 too late in the season, when Tomatoes are plenty and 

 cheap. 



In cultivating Tomatoes in a large way, the only 

 trouble is to grow the plants. When once in per- 

 manent place they require less care than Corn. All 

 that is necessary is to keep the ground well cultivated 

 with horse implements, hand-hoeing once or twice 

 during the season immediately around the plants. 



Yield peb Acre. — In 1864 we contracted with 

 parties to grow them ten thousand baskets of Toma- 

 toes. The Summer of that year was excessively warm 

 and dry, and from a want of experience in handling 

 and shipping so many, quite a large proportion of 

 them spoiled on the vines. Still, from the niunber 

 of acres planted, the average yield gathered was nine 

 hundred baskets to the acre. Since then a careful 

 and large grower has assured me that he has repeated- 

 ly gathered one thousand bushels from an acre, and 

 I have not the least doubt as to the correctness of the 

 estimate. Taking a small piece of ground, we have 

 frequently got a higher average than this, but when 

 grown by the acre, the calculations have to be made 

 accordingly. It will take about twenty-seven hun- 

 dred plants to an acre, and each plant should produce 

 one peck of marketable fruit, making about seven 

 hundred bushels. 



This is a fair estimate of the yield of Tomatoes, 

 and it can be safely stated that the gardener or farm- 

 er, who starts out with a firm determination to cul- 

 tivate and manage his field with care and discretion 



