374 The Principles of Vegetable -Gardening 



blanching celery in vogue at the present day: by the use 

 of boards; banking up with earth; blanching in pits or 

 storage. 



Blanching by means of boards (see Fig. 113) is em- 

 ployed only for the early or summer celery, because 

 protection from frost must be supplied to the celery 

 which remains in the field after the first of October, 

 and the boards usually do not afford sufficient protec- 

 tion. Use boards one foot wide and one inch thick, and 

 about twelve or fourteen feet long. If the boards are 

 much longer than this, they are awkward to handle. 

 These boards are set on edge close against the crown of 

 the plant, one on either side of the row, and the tops 

 are tipped together until they are onl}^ two or three 

 inches apart or until they rest against the plants^. The 

 boards are held in this position by cleats nailed across 

 the top, or by wire hooks. The first boarding" is 

 made when the celery is only tall enough to show a few 

 of its leaves above the boards. The plants shoot up for I 

 light, making slender, soft stalks. The foliage fills the 

 space between the boards and excludes the light from 

 above. In from ten to twenty days in warm growing" 

 weather, the celery may be blanched by this method. 

 In any means of blanching in summer one must see 

 that the plants do not rot at the heart, as they are likely \ 

 to do if they are too wet at the core. The board 

 method of blanching celery is one of the most economi- 

 cal and is now extensively used in the large celery 

 fields. Growers usually find that it pays to obtain a good 

 quality of lumber and to use it year after year. Some . 

 commercial growers think it best to have the lumber ^ I 



