March, 1912 
This shows the formation of a good Lettuce head 
shine available at all times, like early Beans for example. 
There is also the matter of convenience in cultivating to 
be considered. Crops that require practically the same treat- 
ment, as, for instance, sowed Beets, Carrots, Parsnips and 
Onions, should be kept together, especially where they are 
to occupy the ground the season through. All these things 
must be borne in mind in planning one’s garden for the 
greatest efficiency. 
The simplest, most time-saving way is to make an actual 
plan of the garden, drawn to scale, like that suggested on 
page 97. You will find it much more agreeable to make 
your garden mistakes on paper, where they can be erased, 
than in the soil, where the damage done is for the whole 
season. If your garden is to be one of the other types men- 
tioned, for instance, just for a few favorite vegetables, the 
planning need not be so carefully done. In this case the 
thing to take most pains with will be to get the proportions 
right. It is no easy task to arrange your planting so that 
the supply will be constant, instead of in ‘bunches’ —enough 
for three families one week, and not any the next. Jf the 
garden space is limited, I believe much more satisfaction is 
to be had in growing the few things which the family par- 
ticularly likes, than in trying to crowd in the whole list. 
The possibilities of making the garden more or less of an 
ornamental feature are much greater than we usually realize. 
In many instances it may seem desirable to sacrifice part of 
the garden, as measured by mere bulk of crop, to aesthetic 
considerations. A garden planned with the idea of being in 
harmony with the landscape features of a place, rather than 
solely as avegetable factory, is suggested on page 97. 
Where the walks are bordered with turf and a few fruit 
trees may be brought within its bounds, very pleasing re- 
sults can be attained. 
SELECTING SEEDS AND VARIETIES 
There is nothing more exasperating to the gardener than 
having a crop fail because of poor seed. Having gone to 
all the labor of properly preparing and fertilizing his soil 
and planting; having waited and watched anxiously, and 
then to have but here and there along the row a stray, strug- 
gling seedling push its way through the soil, is indeed dis- 
appointing. Buy always the best seed you can get. Inferior 
seed is costly if it is to be had as a gift. The safest way to 
buy seeds is to order them by mail from the most reliable 
firm you know of. And order them early. By waiting you 
may not be able to get just the varieties you want, or you 
may get old or light seed. 
Another thing which will require a good deal of care is 
the selection of varieties. A good rule to go by is to get 
several catalogues and order those varieties which are 
recommended by several seedsmen. Fight shy of the “‘novel- 
ties” that are lauded to the skies—and priced in the same 
AMERICAN HOMES AND GARDENS 95 
region. The good old standard varieties will, in the ma- 
jority of cases, give you the best satisfaction, catalogue pink 
pages and colored plates to the contrary notwithstanding. 
In the table on page 96 are suggested sorts which, in most 
instances, have been tried and given good results for years. 
Each season I try out many “introductions” — I learned long 
ago to get them by the packet only—and in nine cases out 
of ten they are an improvement over sorts that have been 
grown for years. 
Do not lay every failure you have to the seedsman. In 
the majority of cases the fault will prove to be, upon in- 
vestigation, with your work and not with the seeds. Find 
out all you can about the particular requirements of each 
thing you attempt to grow. It might seem to you, for in- 
stance, quite reasonable to plant all your early Peas just as 
soon as you could get the ground ready. ‘The “smooth” 
sorts would come up finely, while the wrinkled ones, such as 
‘““Gradus,”’ would probably rot in the cold, wet soil. The 
inexperienced gardener would blame this to “poor seed.” 
Disgusted with one failure, he would probably re-order the 
same variety from another seedsman, plant ten days later, 
when things had warmed up a bit, get a good “stand,” and 
be convinced that the last seedsmen were the only people 
to deal with. 
BUYING PLANTS 
A number of the early things in the garden—Lettuce, 
Cabbage, Cauliflower, Beets, etc.—will be “‘set out’’ instead 
of grown from seed. The majority of small gardeners have 
no greenhouse or other facilities of their own with which to 
“start”? the few dozen plants required. The best way for 
them is to go in person to some local florist, or market- 
gardener and buy what they need. Remember, that the 
quality of plants for “setting out” is not to be measured 
wholly by their size. Select those which are short, “stocky” 
and well “hardened off” — 
that is, which have been out 
of doors, day and night, for 
several days. A _ tough, 
purplish look does not indi- 
cate that they have been in- 
jured—the opposite, rather. 
SOWING AND PLANTING 
Just as it is vitally im- 
portant to plant seeds at the 
right time, so it is to plant 
them at the right depth, 
and in the right way. The 
usual distances for depth, 
etc., are given in the Plant- 
ing Table herewith. The 
columns showing distance 
apart and distance between 
rows also show the space 
usually allowed, although it 
may be varied one way or 
the other, as space or va- 
rieties make it necessary. 
“UD yaw. Stony) el ial 
“hills” indicate the method 
of planting. The first has 
reference to the sowing of 
seeds continuously and 
rather close together, as 
with Carrots, Onions and 
other “root” crops. The 
second, to sowing seeds or 
setting plants at regular in- 
tervals, such as Okra, Pep- 
pers or Cabbage. ‘“‘Hills”’ 
does not indicate, as many 
Wax Beans are one of the best 
garden crops 
