376 PLANTING LIST 



Sow them under glass in March or April, and (south of New York) 

 out of doors after frosts are past. Two sowings are scarcely neces- 

 sary. Thin the young plants to stand four inches or more apart, 

 and when hardened off, set them in the garden, in deep, rich, moist 

 soil. Protect them with collars, from cutworms. The distances 

 should be according to the style of training. If the plants are to 

 be allowed to lie on the ground, they should be set three feet by 

 eighteen inches or more ; if they are to be trained, they may stand 

 as near as a foot apart in the rows, the rows eighteen inches or 

 more apart. All depends upon the kind of trellis, however. Sup- 

 ports for tomatoes are often made of barrel hoops held up by 

 stakes. But the simplest means of training tomatoes is by tying 

 them to stout stakes, set to the north of the plants. Tie the 

 plants as they grow, loosely, by means of raffia or soft cord. 



The pruning of tomatoes is worth while, because it brings an 

 earlier crop. Half of those which are set should be pruned, in order 

 to secure early fruits. Allow only one, two, or three stems to grow 

 on each plant, and after these are started, cut off from all of them, 

 weekly, all side shoots. The fruits that start on these plants will 

 ripen fast. Use a knife in taking off the shoots, so as not to soil the 

 fingers. 



Protection of the plants from early frosts will lengthen the season. 

 Trained plants may be cut from their stakes and laid on the ground 

 when frosts approach, so as to be conveniently covered at night. 



Tritoma, see Poker Plant. 



Turnip : A vegetable of the cabbage family, grown for its root, 

 which is white or yellow. The plant is very hardy, and may be 

 sowed in early spring, in rows about a foot apart (more space is 

 better) and thinned to about six inches in the rows. It is a short- 

 season and cool-weather crop, and may be sown again in August 

 for a fall crop ; in summer the roots are woody. Feed well with top- 

 dressing. Where the maggot is troublesome, it is scarcely worth 

 while to sow turnips except under cheesecloth ; and if the club-foot 

 gets into the ground, the crop should not be sown for two or three 

 years. Turnips are seldom transplanted. 



