CULTURAL DIRECTIONS 335 



planted in check rows, three or four plants in a hill, the 

 cultivator can be used in both directions. This mate- 

 rially reduces the expense of tillage. In recent years 

 the drill system of planting has become popular in prom- 

 inent trucking sections. The seeds are usually sown 

 with a drill and the plants thinned to a foot or more apart. 

 This system is probably more favorable to the develop- 

 ment of each individual plant; there is less interference 

 of roots as well as vines than when planted in hills, and 

 power sprayers can be used to better advantage. 



The young plants are not only tender to frost, but 

 cold winds greatly retard their growth. To overcome 

 this difficulty the rows are sometimes alternated with 

 bush beans. The protection thus afforded to the cucum- 

 ber is of great value. Another plan is to sow rye in the 

 fall, and in the spring prepare and plant strips of the 

 required width; the remaining areas of rye may be cut 

 and the ground cultivated when the weather becomes 

 warmer and when there is no need of further protection. 



440. Cultivation. — Tillage should be continued as late 

 in the season as possible without injury to the vines. The 

 use of broad hoes in the rows and some hand weeding 

 are often necessary to keep the fields clean. 



441. Marketing. — Cucumbers for slicing should be not 

 less than 6 inches long when picked and all specimens 

 removed before they begin to turn white or yellow. 

 Picklers are gathered when of the size the grower desires. 

 Gathering is the heaviest expense connected with the 

 crop. The small cucumbers are hard to see and large 

 forces of children cannot be trusted to do the work. The 

 fields are looked over two or three times a week in order 

 to find the picklers before they become too large. When 

 wanted for slicing it is necessary to harvest almost as 

 frequently, to secure uniformity in size and degree of 

 maturity. 



Grading is necessary to secure the best returns. A 



