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Starting in Coldframes, 

 Hotbeds, or Indoors 



The gains you can make by "beating the 

 weather" are well worth going after, par- 

 ticularly on tomatoes, cabbage, peppers, 

 cauliflower, broccoli, and kohlrabi. 



But remember that a plant which hasn't 

 been treated right in the flat will not be 

 a good plant in the garden. A transplant 

 that has had to struggle against over or 

 underheating, too much water or too little, 

 etc., will not do as well as a direct-seeded 

 plant or a purchased transplant that has 

 had expert attention. 



However, the right conditions for a suc- 

 cessful indoor start are not difficult to 

 achieve. Any gardener can do the trick 

 by applying a reasonable amount of care 

 and attention. 



Don't begin too soon, unless you have a 

 greenhouse or light hotbed and can give 

 the seedlings plenty of room. For most 

 vegetables, 6 to 7 weeks is time enough to 

 allow between seeding and transplanting. 



Fill shallow boxes (flats) with a mixture of 

 1/3 good garden soil, I/3 clean sand and 

 1/3 compost, leaf mold or other well-rooted 

 organic matter. Make very shallow rows or 

 furrows with the edge of a ruler or a 

 wood lath, 3" apart. Sow seeds in these 

 rows 1" apart in the row. 



DON'T let your soil dry out, and don't let 

 it be soggy. Spray lightly two or three 

 times a day, using an atomizer or bulb 

 sprinkler. When the best seedlings can be 

 selected, thin out to stand 2" to 3" apart. 

 Before transplanting into the garden, with- 

 hold water for 2 or 3 days. 



Transplanting 



Tomato, eggplant, and pepper plants are 

 tender and should not be set out before 

 danger of frost is past. Cabbage, cauli- 

 flower, and kohlrabi are less tender but it 

 is not safe to set them out much before 

 the frost-proof date. 



Where care is needed 

 Use care in transplanting or you will in- 

 jure the tender plants. 



When soil is sufficiently moist so a ball 

 of soil can be retained around each indi- 

 vidual root there is less chance of injury 

 or of air pockets being left around roots. 

 Use a trowel. (It is important that roots be 

 kept in close contact with soil so they can 

 get moisture.) 



When seedlings are to be transplanted 

 without a ball of soil, long tap roots 

 should be shortened, and the whole root 

 system placed and "firmed in" so that it 

 is well spread out, not bunched. Soil in 

 which roots are placed must be finely 

 pulverized. 



When roots have been carefully placed in 

 position, firm the soil around each plant 

 enough to insure that roots are in contact 

 with the soil, and that there are no air 

 pockets. 



Transplant in cool, cloudy weather or at 

 evening or early morning. 



As soon as the garden has been planted, 

 water thoroughly but gently with a fine 

 spray. This, by the way, is the only time 

 we sprinkle a garden; once the plants are 

 established, any watering should give the 

 soil a good soaking. 



Watering 



Soak, don't sprinkle. Your garden needs 

 water when the leaves look wilted in the 

 sun and do not recover freshness over 

 night. 



Except for transplants, try to avoid water- 

 ing the garden until it really needs water. 



Don't wash away fopsoU 

 When you do water, soak, don't sprinkle. 



Do a thorough job. The hose or sprinkler 

 should be allowed to run on one spot 

 until water stands on the surface. 

 The best way to do a thorough soaking 

 job is to use a canvas hose that leaks all 

 along its length, placed along a row at a 

 time. Let the water run until the soil is 

 saturated to a good depth. Then move 

 hose to next row. 



If an overhead sprinkler is used be sure it 

 doesn't have too much force, or it will 

 wash the soil away. 



If you have only an ordinary hose (with- 

 out holes), remove nozzle and place a 

 small board under the end of the hose to 

 distribute water gently. 

 Water in the evening or early morning. 

 After watering, the soil should be moist 

 to a depth of five to six inches. Check 

 this with a spade to be sure. 



A Program for 

 Garden Sanitation 



About 75% of the work and much of the 

 damage caused by insects can be elim- 

 inated by a simple, regular program of 

 sanitation. Preventive dusting or spraying 

 is much easier than waging a losing bat- 

 tle against bugs when they appear. Usual- 

 ly, less than 30 minutes a week should 

 be needed for a regular sanitation pro- 

 gram for both flowers and vegetables. 



