6 MAKING HORTICULTURE PAY 



observance of these facts will aid in securing quick 

 growth and a heavy yield. 



"The soil all the way down should be fine, 

 mellow, and yet compact. It should be healthy, 

 rich looking, and in good heart. This condition is 

 obtained when lime has been added to sweeten the 

 soil and to keep it sweet when vegetables and 

 stable manure are liberally applied to loosen and 

 liven up, and when fertilizers are injected to stim- 

 ulate growth and to keep the soil abundantly sup- 

 plied with immediately available plant food. 



" After getting the garden going change the crops 

 around. Do not grow the same crop year after 

 year in the same spot. Garden crops rebel against 

 this hardship just as do field crops. Their roots 

 like change; they enjoy variety just as do live, 

 active men and women. And there are good rea- 

 sons for this change. Plants differ in their tastes. 

 Grown in the same place for some years they find 

 the soil stale ; they grow tired of it. Potatoes do well 

 following peas and beans ; melons after potatoes, 

 and cabbage and melons after turnips and corn. 

 Change the little spots, rotate them about, first 

 here, then there, then elsewhere. It all pays, be- 

 cause the change is helpful to the crop. 



TECHNIQUE OF HANDLING SOILS 



" Try to do the soil work at just the right time. 

 Fall and winter plowing are very helpful. The 

 clods are pounded and broken down by the hard 

 frost that puts the soil in far better physical con- 

 dition than would be possible by spring plowing. 

 As a rule, too, one wishes to get certain garden 

 crops started early. When tillage is done while 

 the ground is still wet, the land is injured, maybe 



