October, 1917 



THE GARDEN MAGAZINE 



85 



While cabbage will keep in a cellar or store 

 room where a low temperature can be main- 

 tained, part of the crop should be put in a 

 pit or trench for spring use as it will keep longer 

 there than indoors. Where there is not 

 ample room in a cellar, space may be saved by 

 taking the heads up with the roots attached, 

 tying several together and suspending them 

 from hooks or nails in the cellar rafters. For 

 this purpose ordinary "corn ties" of stout 

 tarred string with a wire clip at one end for 

 fastening are very convenient. The heads to 

 be stored in a trench should have the stems and 

 most of the leaves left on and be packed in an 

 inverted position. 



Keeping the Root Crops 



npHE various "root crops," including beets, 

 ■*• carrots, turnips, rutabagas, parsnips, sal- 

 sify and winter radish are also easily kept, but 

 to remain in the best of condition require more 

 moisture than potatoes. For that reason they 

 do best if packed in sand or light soil. This, 

 however, has some objections as it is very 

 heavy to handle and in case a store room in the 

 house is being used involves a considerable 

 "mussing-up." Sphagnum moss can be used 

 as a substitute for sand or soil as it holds 

 moisture for a long time and has the ad- 

 vantage of being clean and very light to 

 handle. The method of packing vegetables 

 in moss is shown in the photograph on page 

 95. These crops may be left in the ground 

 until danger of hard freezing weather. Be- 

 fore storing the tops are removed, but they 

 should not be cut off too close to the roots. 

 Leave half an inch to an inch of the stems with 

 the roots. Store as soon as possible after dig- 

 ging, so that they will not be exposed to the 

 sun and wind. A store room, being more dry 

 than a cellar, is not so satisfactory for storing 

 vegetables of this kind; they may, however, be 

 easily kept in a trench or pit, which will bring 

 them through in the best condition for use in 

 late winter and early spring. Parsnips and 

 salsify, being perfectly hardy, may be left out 

 where they grew for use as soon as the ground 

 thaws out enough to make it possible to dig 

 them. 



Celery is one of the most appreciated of 

 winter vegetables, but requires special at- 

 tention in preparing for storing. The part 



Remove the tops from parsnips in preparing for storage 



of the crop to be used during fall and early 

 winter may be kept most conveniently in a 

 trench out-of-doors. This should be dug about 

 a foot wide and deep enough so that the 

 plants when packed into it upright will come 

 about level with the surface. They are put in 

 with the roots and soil on, but dry when 

 packed away. Upon approach of severe freez- 

 ing weather the trench can be covered up with 

 a mulch of marsh hay, straw, or leaves. For 

 the winter supply use narrow boxes about a 

 foot wide and deep enough to take the celery 

 pretty near to the tops of the leaves when 

 packed away in an upright position. An inch 

 or two of soil or light sand is placed in the 

 boxes and made moist before the plants are 

 put in. These boxes can be placed in a cellar 

 or store room. They should be examined from 

 time to time and if necessary given enough 

 water to keep the plants from wilting, apply- 

 ing it to the roots only. Even though quite 

 green when put away the stalks will come 

 out white and crisp when they are wanted for 

 use. 



Warm Temperature Vegetables 



CQUASH, pumpkins, and sweet potatoes, 

 ^ unlike all the vegetables mentioned above, 

 which keep best at a temperature a few 

 degrees above freezing, will keep in a fairly 

 warm place, 45 degrees or more, and as dry 

 as possible. Where there is an upstairs room, 

 a closet or an attic with a chimney or stove 

 pipe going through it, it is an easy matter to 

 arrange a few shelves on which to store these 

 things and in this way they may be kept until 

 well into the spring. 



Tomatoes, Corn, and Cauliflower After Frost 



/^VF THE several vegetables which may be 

 ^^ stored for some time, thus having them for 

 a number of weeks after they are usually "out 

 of season," tomatoes, sweet corn, cauliflower 

 and melons are the most important. To- 

 matoes which have attained nearly their full 

 size will ripen up gradually after being picked 

 if kept in a cool, shady place. Put in the win- 

 dow in the hot sun, as they frequently are, to 

 ripen, they merely "cook." The fruits to be 

 ripened should be picked with the greatest 

 care and either wrapped individually in 

 tissue papers or packed in excelsior or dry 

 sphagnum moss or dead grass in small crates 

 or in a cold frame where they can be covered 

 when a dangerously cold night threatens. A 

 few of the best plants may be taken up by the 

 roots after the ripe fruits have been picked and 

 hung up in the cellar or store room or a frost- 

 proof shed and will keep in good condition for 

 a long time. 



Mr. Robert Livingston, of Ohio, well 

 known as the originator of so many splendid 

 varieties, thinks the best way of preserving 

 tomatoes for winter is to take ripe and sound 

 fruits, free from any cracks or blemishes; 

 place in a stone crock and pour over them cold, 

 very strong brine. Cover the crock with a 

 clean, white cotton cloth held in place by an 

 inverted plate. Keep the receptacle in a clean, 

 dry cellar. To prepare the tomatoes for use, 

 soak them in fresh, cold water for 12 to 24 

 hours, when they may be peeled and sliced like 

 fresh fruit. When handled in this manner, to- 

 matoes keep from four to six months. 



Sweet corn, of course, is likely to succumb 

 to the first frost. If, however, the plants are 

 cut — preferably just a day before the first 

 freeze is to be expected — and placed in small 

 shocks the mature ears will remain in fair con- 

 dition for quite a long time, as the sap in the 



stalks and leaves keeps the ears from wilting 

 as they would if pulled off. They can then be 

 gathered as wanted from the cut stalk and 

 while not so good as summer corn fresh from 

 the living plants will be considerably better 

 than having none at all. 



Cauliflower, while similar to cabbage in 

 many respects, cannot be stored in the same 

 way. If, however, the plants which still have 

 immature heads or " buttons" on the approach 

 of freezing weather are taken up by the roots 

 and set closely together in a cold frame or hot- 

 bed and given an occasional watering if neces- 

 sary to keep the soil moist, they will continue 

 to develop and keep fresh and plump for some 

 weeks. 



Brussels sprouts — another cousin in the cab- 

 bage family — are so hardy that they can be 

 left out of doors where growing without any 

 protection for use up until Christmas or even 

 after. 



Nearly mature plants of lettuce and endive 

 can be put into the frames in the same way, 

 care being taken to keep the foliage dry and 

 the soil moderately moist. All these things 

 should be protected from hot sun by muslin 

 covered sash or some similar device. 



Peppers, eggplant, melons and cucumbers 

 may be picked and stored as described for 

 tomatoes and will keep in good condition for a 

 considerable length of time. The greatest 

 care should be exercised, however, to get good 

 sound specimens and to handle them like soft- 

 shelled eggs. 



The temperature for cauliflower, lettuce and 

 endive handled as described above should be 

 kept as cool as possible down to 35 to 40 de- 

 grees at night, while for tomatoes, melons and 

 the other things mentioned, ten or fifteen de- 

 grees more will be better. 



The most careful examination must be 

 given everything that is to be stored before it is 

 put into winter quarters. With both fruits 

 and vegetables it is preferable, where con- 

 venient, to go over everything as late as pos- 

 sible in the season. It will frequently be 

 found that some specimens that looked per- 

 fectly sound and healthy at harvest time have 

 begun to show signs of spoiling in the follow- 

 ing few weeks. If these are thrown out or put 

 aside for immediate use it will often save the 

 remainder. 



By keeping carrots, beets, etc., in compartments they are 

 easily reached 



