2 



SEASONABLE HINTS. 



These columns of timely reminders are 

 intended principally for beginners in gar- 

 dening, yet even those of riper experience 

 may derive benefit from having called to 

 mind some seasonable suggestions, and by 

 comparing notes with others of different ex- 

 periences. "Winter is often considered as the 

 gardener's season of rest, but in reality there 

 is no season of the year in which there can- 

 not something be done to advance the in- 

 terests of our gardening operations. At this 

 time we may improve our prospective crops 

 materially by perfecting our plans deliber- 

 ately and by preparing for the coming season's 

 operations. 



Good tools are, next to soil of proper con- 

 dition, the most important requisites for 

 successful gardening. With good, light, 

 properly adapted tools, work, which without 

 their use would be hard labor and drudgery, 

 may become a pleasure and recreation. We 

 do not advise any one to invest in every new 

 implement he finds advertised or which the 

 agents bring to his door, yet some of them 

 are well worth our careful examination. The 

 improvement in our modern gardening and 

 farming implements has been so great that 

 their superiority is now recognized through- 

 out the civilized world. The time and labor 

 saved in the use of some of them will fre- 

 quently pay, in one season, for more than 

 their cost. This is a favorable time to look 

 over the lists of implement dealers, and to 

 select improved tools that possess advantages 

 over the old and worn-out ones. All the im- 

 plements named in our Premium List we 

 .know to be what is claimed for them, and we 

 are sure that no one will ever regret the pur- 

 chase of a good Spading Fork, an Improved 

 Prong Hoe, a Warren Hoe, and a Dutch or 

 Scuffle Hoe. 



Fertilizers. Although every one is aware 

 of the necessity of a plentiful use of manure 

 in gardening, few take sufficient pains to pre- 

 pare it so as to have it in the most effective 

 and assimilable condition. Coarse, fresh 

 manure is of but little benefit to early and 

 rapid growing vegetables. In order to pro- 

 mote their growth materially the manure 

 used should be fine and mellow. 



Composting is the sovereign means for 

 bringing fertilizing material into the most 

 favorable condition for gardening purposes. 

 Of course, stable manure should always form 

 the basis of a compost heap, but any refuse 

 material that will rot, and for which there is 

 often no suitable place of deposit to be found, 

 dry leaves raked from the lawn and around 

 the house, all decaying vines and stalks from 

 the garden, with an occasional layer of muck, 

 sods, or soil, house slops, soap-suds and all 

 kitchen offal, when not utilized otherwise, 

 add to its increase and value. 



Preserving Seeds. One of the best ways to 

 preserve small quantities of seeds is to tie 

 them in bags, each kind by itself, and hang 

 them upon wires in a dry, cold place. The 

 wires should be not less than three feet long, 

 suspended perpendicularly from the ceiling, 

 and not nearer to a wall than three feet, else 

 mice might be tempted to jump over on the 

 seed-bags. The vitality of seeds is not in- 

 jured by the severest cold, provided the at- 

 mosphere surrounding them be pure and dry. 



HILLING POTATOES. 



The question of hilling, ridging, or level 

 culture for the Potato seems to be one 

 mainly of conditions, the object to be at- 

 tained being the same in all cases. The 

 results of certain experiments made last 

 year at the New York Agricultural Experi- 

 ment Station, by Dr. E. L. Sturtevant, from 

 whose report we cite these notes, seem to 

 add force to the hypothesis that the condi- 

 tions under which the Potato becomes of the 

 best quality and most prolific, are those 

 which secure dryness and warmth for the 

 tuber, moisture and coolness for the roots. 



The examination of the growing Potato, 

 the soil being a strong clay, shows that the 

 tubers, under field culture and under field 

 conditions, are borne above the seed, while 

 the roots extending from the eye pass down- 

 ward into the soil to the depth of twenty or 

 more inches. But few roots are to be seen 

 occupying the upper and warmer layers of 

 the soil, and, in general, we may say that 

 with us the major part of the roots passed 

 below the region of soil which would be dis- 

 tributed by the ordinary process of cultiva- 

 tion. In cases where the upper surface of 

 the soil was purposely kept of friable text- 

 ure there was a marked tendency of the 

 tuber to approach the surface, but in the 

 strong clay soil this tendency was not mani- 

 fest, 



Ridging or hilling in a clay soil brings 

 the formation of the tuber into that region 

 of soil kept dry by position and kept warm 

 by the sun's rays. Cultivation with ordinary 

 hoeing has a tendency to furnish a midch of 

 fine earth that protects the roots which are 

 below the tuber from the heat of the sun's 

 rays and checks the evaporation of the 

 moisture from the soil below the stirred 

 portion. Upon sandy land we may assume 

 that level culture will fulfill similar conditions 

 of keeping the tuber in a warm, dry, upper 

 soil, and forcing the roots deeper into the 

 cooler and moister strata below. 



However the theory, the facts of expression 

 based upon this view have given interesting 

 results. The seed used in these comparisons 

 was the whole Potato. The yield calculated 

 to the one hundred hills may be represented 

 in the following table ■ 



Pounds of mer- 

 chantable tubers. 



Ordinary level culture 



Ordinary ridge culture 83 % 



In ridges and the intervals mulched . . . 92^ 



Potatoes covered with straw M% 



Potatoes covered with sand 184 



• 



We may state the results of these experi- 

 ments as follows : 



Soil which could raise only a calculated 

 crop per acre under ordinary level culture of 

 eighty-six bushels, under ridge culture of 

 one hundred and fifty-one bushels, yet under 

 theoretical circumstances, yielded upon the 

 same soil at the rate of three hundred and 

 thirty-four bushels per acre. 



These experiments seem to have a great 

 significance, but there is need of more than 

 one year's trial before we can feel assured 

 of the correctness of this hypothesis, and yet 

 it would be very strange if the climate of one 

 year could be such as to lead to misinterpre- 

 tation of results so clearly defined and 

 offering such great differences. 



House experiments, carried on in glass 

 pots, and with single eyes used as seed, offer 

 results which may be considered corrobor- 

 ative of this hypothesis. 



GROWING HUBBARD SQUASHES. 



The cultivation of the different sorts of 

 vines has always been regarded by the gar- 

 dener as one of the most difficult things con- 

 nected with the culture of vegetable products. 

 He may be successful in obtaining a good 

 growth of vines, but unless they are pro- 

 ductive there will be but little profit arising 

 from their culture. The great improvements 

 in the quality of several varieties of Squashes 

 have produced considerable demand for 

 them, superseding almost entirely the Pump- 

 kin for cooking purposes. 



The Hubbard Squash is one of the best sorts 

 for Winter use, and, when grown under favor- 

 able conditions, is one of the most profitable 

 crops. Its fine flavor, grain, and excellence 

 for cooking purposes make it a general fav- 

 orite with all families acquainted with its 

 superior quality. Having grown this Squash 

 on nearly all kinds of soil with the use of a 

 number of varieties of fertilizers before I 

 met with success, I propose to give my 

 method of cultivation. 



My first attempt met with only partial 

 success. The Squash, like all kinds of vines, 

 revels in a warm, rich loam. The soil se- 

 lected was too heavy, containing too much 

 clay, and caused the failure in part. I used 

 hog manure in the hill, which gave a wonder- 

 ous growth of vines but bore few Squashes. 

 Another season I tried barnyard manure, 

 using a little phosphate in the hill. The re- 

 sult was somewhat more satisfactory but not 

 entirely so. The third season I used on part 

 of the piece the contents of the privy and 

 the success was all that could be desired. 

 The vines grew rank and vigorously, and at 

 first I thought to have a repetition of my first 

 years' experience, but this was not so ; the 

 vines blossomed nicely and were well set 

 with young Squashes, and on this part of the 

 piece, — perhaps one-third of the field, — there 

 were more Squashes than on the other two- 

 thirds. One peculiarity which I noticed was 

 the general uniformity in the size of the 

 Squashes. There were not so many small 

 ones, while they seemed to ripen evenly and 

 thoroughly. Since then I have used this 

 fertilizer with great success and have never 

 failed to raise good crops until this season, 

 the drouth affecting the vines to such an ex- 

 tent that the crop proved a partial failure. 



I manure in the hill and get the fertilizers 

 in as fine condition as possible, cover to a 

 depth of two or three inches with good mel- 

 low soil and then plant, using a sufficient 

 number of seeds to the hill to preclude all loss 

 from poor seed. Wben the vines begin to 

 grow, I thin out, keep the weeds down, and 

 hoe the vines when needed. In this way I can 

 ordinarily (the season being favorable) sec- 

 ure a good crop and have never found any 

 trouble in marketing them at good prices. 



In this connection, a gentleman related to 

 me recently the following incident : Said he, 

 " I had a vine come on my place close by my 

 privy. I let it grow, and in due time it proved 

 to be a Hubbard Squash. It grew won- 

 drously, blossomed full, and was well set. 

 The Squashes grew finely, and at the time of 

 picking I took thirty-six Squashes from that 

 vine." This may seem to be a big story, but 

 his neighbors corroborated it and it only 

 showed the affinity of the Squash for this sort 

 of fertilizer. Let those who contemplate the 

 growing of Squashes another season try this 

 method and they can hardly fail of success. 



E. E. Billings. 



