When to Plant in Any Part of the Country 



Handling the Seeds to Get Early Crops — Temperature and Temperaments — Tricks of Experience 



THE inexperienced gardener soon 

 learns that plants such as tomato, 

 pepper, melon, and eggplant, which 

 have been brought from their native 

 warm countries to grow in our cool or cold 

 climate gardens are like spoiled children; they 

 still insist upon having what they consider 

 comfortable temperatures or they will refuse 

 to grow, and if the temperatures are low they 

 will sulk or even die. Similarly, plants of 

 even the hardy northern species, such as 

 cabbage, celery, lettuce, and onion, if started 

 in greenhouses or hotbeds, will be just as 

 tender because of this pampering and will 

 be just as sulky and tender. 



Experienced gardeners overcome this 

 tenderness by "hardening-off" plants of 



warm climate and cold climate crops alike. 

 After the seedlings have made a good start 

 they are transplanted and made to grow in 

 temperatures relatively lower than they like, 

 but not low enough to do them injury. Under 

 such conditions they grow more slowly but 

 more stockily, and are therefore better able 

 to withstand relatively low temperature and 

 to "take hold" of the soil quickly when 

 transplanted to the garden. 



For convenience, the vegetables to be 

 grown out of doors may be grouped under 

 two general headings, tender and hardy, and 

 each of these classes may be sub-divided into 

 two minor groups depending upon whether 

 the seeds are first sown under glass or out-of- 

 doors. 



ADJUSTABLE PLANTING TABLE FOR VEGETABLE SEEDS 



Generally adapted to zone of Connecticut and Iowa. (Zones C and D of map on page 127). Allow a week 

 earlier or later for each 100 miles south or north accordingly; also make allowances for altitude 



VEGETABLE 



FEB. 



MAR. 



APRIL 



MAY 



JUNE 



1ULY 



"s 



7 

 3 



2 



3 

 8 



2 

 2 



2 



3 



9 



3 



3 



AUG. 



SEPT. 



OCT. 



" pole 



I 



I 

 I 

 I 



I 



I 

 I 



I 



I 

 I 



3 



3 

 I 



2 



I 



3 



I 



I 



3 



9 

 I 



I 



I 

 I 



I 



9 



I 



2 

 I 



7 

 7 

 I 

 9 



9 



3 

 3 

 7 

 9 

 I 



I 



3 



7 

 3 

 3 

 7 



3 



2 

 2 



7 



2 



3 



2 



2 

 2 

 3 



7 



3 

 9 

 I 



2 

 2 



2 

 2 

 I 

 I 

 I 



9 

 7 

 I 



3 

 3 

 7 

 7 

 I 

 9 

 7 

 I 

 9 



3 

 3 

 7 

 9 



I 



3 



7 

 3 



' 8' 

 7 

 7 

 3 



2 



2 



2 

 2 

 3 



2 



2 

 2 

 3 



"8 

 3 



7 



2 

 2 



2 

 2 

 2 

 2 

 7 



7 

 9 



7 



2 



3 

 3 



7 



2 



9 



7 

 7 

 9 



7 

 7 



2 



8' 



7 

 7 

 3 



2 

 2 



2 



3 



2 



3 

 8 

 3 



7 



2 



2 

 2 

 2 

 3 



7 

 7 

 9 



2 



9 



7 

 9 



7 



3 



3 



3 

 3 



"o'- 



'o' 



9 



9 

 9 



"o' 

























Pop 



Eggplant 



Endive 



S. 



Kale . 









Leek • . . . 



Lettuce 



Mustard 



Okra 



"o' 

 9 















Pea . . 









Potato 



9 







Radish 



9 









S 













Condensed Directions for Sowing and Planting 



1. Sow SEED IN FORCING HOUSE OR HOTBED. When the 



seedlings have grown two or three true leaves transplant into 

 shallow boxes (flats) of soil or small flower pots and after they 

 have begun to grow well remove to coldframes. Here keep 

 the temperature rather low by ample airing. Allow abundant 

 light but water sparingly. This will harden off and make the 

 plants stocky — excellent for transplanting. When the ground 

 is in good condition and the weather fairly settled, transplant 

 to the garden. Plants properly hardened should need no 

 protection. Should a frost occur they may be saved by drench- 

 ing them thoroughly with cold water before sunrise in the 

 following morning. Or to prevent frost injuries the plants may 

 be covered the night before with straw, burlap — anything to 

 prevent the loss of warmth by radiation of heat into space. 



2. As SOON AS THE SOIL CAN BE FINELY WORKED, SOW the 



seeds thinly in little nursery beds of well prepared soil preferably 

 in a place sheltered from north and west winds by a tight 

 board fence or a building. Transplant the seedlings to the 

 places they are to mature in the open ground as soon as they 

 have formed two or three true leaves. 



3. When the open ground is in good condition to work, 

 low seeds thinly where the plants are to grow until edible 



maturity. Though transplanting may be done, it is not common 

 because it is less sure of success than with certain other plants. 

 Instead of transplanting the inferior and crowded seedlings 

 the plants are thinned out so the remaining ones will have a 

 better chance to grow well. 



4. Sow in coldframes of good soil, cover the sashes with 

 straw during winter and transplant the seedlings to the open 

 ground as soon as it becomes workable in the spring. 



5. Sow in the garden and protect the seedlings over winter 

 with a liberal covering of straw, corn stalks or litter during 

 winter. When buds of fruit trees begin to swell remove the 

 mulch. The plants may be cut for consumption shortly after. 



6. Sow in a coldframe, protect with sashes and straw mats 

 during cold weather especially at night. Give sunlight during 

 the day and ventilation even to the complete removal of the 

 sashes during mild sunny weather. The crop may be gathered 

 in late November, December, January and February. 



7. Sow or plant out of doors as soon as the soil is in 

 workable condition, placing the plants at proper distances 

 apart as planting or sowing is done. 



8. Each two weeks make a sowing in the open garden. 



9. Sow rather thickly in the open ground where the 

 plants are to remain. Cut with shears or sharp knife or pull 

 up as soon as the plants become large enough to use. 



136 



The warm climate or tender vegetables 

 include eggplant, melons, beans, corn, pepper, 

 okra (or gumbo), squash, tomato, sweet 

 potato, Irish potato, and pumpkin. These 

 will tolerate neither frost nor continued low 

 temperatures. 



The hardy vegetables which if not coddled or 

 mismanaged will often stand several degrees of 

 frost are: French and Jerusalem artichokes, 

 asparagus, beet, broccoli, brussels sprouts, 

 cabbage, cardoon, carrot, cauliflower, celery, 

 celeriac, chicory, collards, endive, kale, kohl- 

 rabi, leek, lettuce, mustard, onion, parsley, 

 parsnip, peas, peppergrass, radish, ruta- 

 baga, salsify, sea kale, spinach, and turnip. 



Use of Glass for Early Start 



DLANTS of some of the vegetables in each 

 class are started under glass so the 

 seedlings may be transplanted out-of-doors 

 when conditions begin to be really favorable 

 for their growing. Thus early cabbage is 

 started in the greenhouse or the hotbed in 

 February or often in January. The seedlings 

 are ready to transplant to coldframes, or at 

 least cooler quarters, in a month to six weeks. 



Then seeds of tomato, pepper and other 

 tender crops are sown in the hotbed thus 

 vacated. By the time the tomato seedlings 

 are large enough to be transplanted to the 

 coldframes the cabbage plants may be set in 

 the garden, and by the middle to the latter 

 part of May out-of-doors. It is wise to wait 

 until all danger of a late spring frost has passed 

 before transplanting the tender plants to the 

 open ground so as not to chill or check them. 



Other hardy plants such as broccoli, cauli- 

 flower, kohlrabi, may be started in the same 

 way as cabbage and followed by various mem- 

 bers of the tender group — cucumber, okra, 

 pepper, melon, eggplant, etc. 



Such methods are not necessary for hardy 

 kinds, because seeds of all these sown as 

 early as the ground (in a sunny, sheltered and 

 therefore warm situation) can be worked will 

 grow well. Later they will produce edible 

 sized vegetables during any normal season. 

 On the other hand, starting plants under 

 glass has become so common that everyone 

 accepts it as a convenient if not the best 

 method. Should only a few plants of any one 

 kind be required it may be just as well to 

 buy them ready grown rather than to fuss 

 with them. But don't set them in the open 

 ground too soon. Eggplant, for instance, 

 subjected to cold though not frosty weather 

 will get a fit of the sulks that may last all 

 season in spite of every later enticement. 

 Tomatoes and peppers are nearly as touchy. 

 Make haste slowly with all these. 



Fortunately for the beginner as well as 

 older hands the various ways in which vege- 

 table seeds may be sown and the plants 

 handled can be stated succinctly and referred 

 to by key numbers as in the accompanying 

 table. Taken together we thus have the 

 methods of starting and growing 52 dif- 

 ferent of the leading kinds of vegetables 

 grown in the United States and Canada. In 

 a general way this applies to the area from 

 Connecticut to Iowa. If you live outside 

 of this belt you should calculate on planting 

 one week earlier for each 100 miles your 

 locality is to the south or one week later 

 for each 100 miles north. If you reside in a 

 mountainous part of the country you should 

 plant later than if your place is in low lands. 

 Study the zone map on page 127. 



