CHAPTER XVI 



VEGETABLE-GARDENING TOOLS AND 

 IMPLEMENTS 



The tool multiplies the power of the man. Relative to 

 the price of land, labor is expensive in America. It must 

 be economized. Tools and implements are a necessity. 



To an important degree it is true that the successful 

 American farmer is known by the number and variety of 

 his tools. The man who has many useful implements em- 

 phasizes brain above brawn. He is tactful and resource- 

 ful. He means to be master of the situation. He is to 

 accomplish the given result with the least expenditure of 

 mere muscular energy. He will do his work better and 

 more expeditiously than the man who depends on his 

 hands and his strength. Good tools educate the man. 

 Their use cultivates ingenuity. They teach him to think. 



On the other hand, the man who is rich in large agri- 

 cultural implements has less intiniate contact with his 

 plants than has the hand-worker. The machine is be- 

 tween him and the plant. He depreciates the value of 

 painstaking human care in the growing and the training 

 of the plant. If he becomes machine-minded rather than 

 plant-minded, he ceases to be a gardener. 



In American conditions, a large equipment of tools is 

 necessary to an abundant and cheap crop. The nicest 

 judgment is required to make a proper choice; for the 



(3SS) 



