Cfnltoren's Gartens €berj>toi)ere 



Conducted by ELLEN EDDY SHAW, New York 



THE WORK DONE BY CHILDREN IN THE GARDEN SHOULD BE AS REAL, AS PRACTICAL, AND AS EFFECTIVE AS 

 THAT DONE BY OLDER GARDENERS —THE PROBLEM OF SUMMER CARE — RULES FOR YOUNG GARDENERS 



Lettuce Cultivation 



REMEMBER this, it does not pay to 

 plant any but heading lettuce. Head- 

 ing lettuce is the kind which has a nice, 

 hard, white ball of leaves in the centre. 



If you have planted your lettuce and it 

 is not beginning to form a head, do this: 

 Gently tie the large outer leaves up over 

 the inner ones. This will happen. The 

 inner leaves will whiten just as leaves 

 of plants do when set away in the dark. 

 If you try this experiment let me know what 

 success you have with it. 



Then, too, I would buy a package of seed 

 of some good heading variety. Tennis 

 Ball or Boston Head is good. Plant just 

 as you did before in furrows a half inch deep. 

 When the little plants are up thin out until 

 your plants are three inches apart. Now 

 when these plants are about two inches 

 high, or when the second pair of leaves 

 comes, transplant. Did you know that 

 transplanting helps lettuce to head? 



HOW TO TRANSPLANT 



Choose a cloudy day or do your work 

 after sunset. You see you wish to avoid 

 the sun. You are going now to pull up 

 gently, every other lettuce plant. So you 

 leave your lettuce plants just six inches 

 apart. This space gives the lettuce quite an 

 opportunity to grow and spread. 



Now in the row you have been saving to 

 transplant into, with your finger, make 

 holes about two inches deep and six inches 

 apart. Pour a little water into each hole. 

 Put your lettuce, one in each hole, pat the 

 earth down hard about the roots and stems, 

 and sprinkle a little water on with you hand. 



Next day you must look out, for if the sun 

 comes out hot it may kill your plants or 

 make them very sick and limp. So to 

 prevent this cover them through the hot part 

 of the day with strawberry baskets. 



Now keep in mind two things: Keep 



Rows left implanted in the lettuce bed may be 

 used for later sowings 



your plants moist. Keep them covered for 

 several days while the sun is up. These 

 two things will give them a good start. 



HOW TO HAVE CRISP LETTUCE IN MID-SUMMER 



You know you can go on planting lettuce 

 every two weeks all summer. Lettuce 

 in mid-summer is usually tough. 



Here is a little trick. If you use it, you may 

 have nice, fresh, crisp lettuce, just like your 

 early lettuce, all summer. Make a frame 

 like lattice work and place it as a screen 

 before your lettuce bed. Tilt it somewhat 

 so that you do not cut off too much sun. 

 Suppose you make it of laths; nail them a 

 lath's width apart on a frame. The frame of 

 an old window screen is good to use. You see, 

 it 's the sun that does the mischief. Perhaps 

 a screen made of cheesecloth instead of laths 

 would do. Try it and let me know the result. 



CAN LETTUCE TAKE A PRIZE? 



A boy asked me this question. He said, 

 "Suppose I have good lettuce in July, may 

 I send it in?" Surely, send it on; only 

 send more than one head. One sample is 

 not fair to judge from. Pack three or four 

 heads in a paste-board box, line your box first 

 with oiled paper, sprinkle well before sending. 

 Be sure the wrapping paper is heavy. Direct 

 all samples to the "Children's Editor" at 

 Doubleday, Page & Co.'s office. 



Garden Care 



IF you have your garden well started, 

 everything now depends upon how well 

 you care for it. There are just two things 

 to do. One is to keep weeds out. The 

 other is to work the soil. 



About the weeds first: some weeds are so 

 small you can easily pick them out with 

 your hands. Others are much larger and 

 their roots go down sometimes farther than 

 your plant roots. So these latter are bad 

 enemies. Don't pull off the tops carelessly 

 close down to the ground and think you 

 have settled the case. That chap will start 

 up again from the root you left behind. 

 You must get out the entire root. Perhaps 

 you had better use a trowel. Dig carefully 

 down until you have it all. 



Always make nice piles of the weeds to 

 gather up later. Don't throw them just one 

 side.- Your garden must always look well. 



And now about working the soil. You 

 often hear gardeners and farmers say that. 

 This is what they mean. Keep the ground 

 all the time stirred up. If yours is a vege- 

 table garden, planted in rows a foot or more 

 apart, then hoe between the rows. Of 

 course you will be careful not to hoe too near 

 the plants and injure them. If your garden 

 is a flower garden or planted to small 

 341 



vegetables use a trowel and each day or two 

 turn over the soil between the plants. 



Did you know that stirring the soil is 

 better than watering? Don't begin to water 

 your garden. Did you know that if you 

 start to water it you will have to keep it up. 

 If it is very dry this summer, of course, then 

 you will have to water it. Always do this at 

 night, that is after sun-down, or very early 

 in the morning before the sun is up. But it 

 is much better to do it at night. It 's a good 

 after-supper piece of work. 



Here are our garden-care rules all together. 

 You might print them for yourself and post 

 them up where you keep your garden tools. 



Garden Rules 



I. Keep garden cleaned of rubbish. 



II. Keep all weeds out. 



III. Never water garden while sun is up. 



IV. Water only in very dry weather. 

 V. Stir soil constantly. 



VI. Clean tools after using and return 

 to place. 



Garden Helps 



WHENEVER you plant, label the rows. 

 Then you will know exactly where 

 your plants should appear. If you have 

 made no labels this year, split a clothes pin 

 right in two. This makes a fair emergency 

 label. For you see, there is a thin round 

 end to stick into the ground and a larger 

 head end to which you can attach a cord. 

 Carry this cord to the other end of your row 

 and attach to the other half of the clothes 

 pin. This string makes a guide for mark- 

 ing off a furrow and for planting. 



The handle of a rake placed so that the 

 teeth stand up from the ground, pressed hard 

 down makes a good furrow. I believe it is 

 well to leave strings and labels in the garden 

 until the plants get a good, vigorous start. 



The rake handle is an excellent furrow maker. 

 Have the teeth stand up from the ground 



