A very profitable amount of vegetables may be 

 grown on a small area when the right ones are 

 selected and when they are properly cared for. 



Luther Burbank, when still a boy, practiced 

 intensive farming and taught us a lesson that may 

 still be practiced ' with profit. He was growing 

 vegetables near Fitchburg, Massachusetts, and 

 desired, quite naturally, to get the highest prices 

 for his products. 



He realized that the highest prices were paid 

 for the earliest crops. Sweet corn was one of the 

 best selling vegetables, so he planned to get ahead 

 of his competitors by putting sweet corn in the 

 Fitchburg market two or three weeks before his 

 neighbors' crops matured. 



Mr. Burbank soaked the seed in a glass jar and 

 allowed it to sprout. When the sprouts were about 

 an inch long he planted the sprouting seeds in 

 furrows, dropping them in thickly, and paying no 

 attention as to whether they were right side up or 

 not. The bed had previously been thoroughly 

 prepared and almost before he had finished plant- 

 ing, the first kernels were sending their shoots 

 above the soil. This early start was stimulated 

 and the rapid growth was maintained by the 

 liberal application of fertilizer between the fur- 

 rows. The corn grew rapidly and matured early 



[8] 



