DRY-LAND GAKDENING AT MANDAN, N. DAK. 13 
Reading Giant variety is very good. Other good varieties are Washington, 
Conover's Colossal, and Giant Argenteul. 
Beans. — Both shell and snap-podded beans do well in an average season. 
If there is a protracted dry period in the latter part of June and the early part of 
July, the plants will set pods so late that there is danger of the shell beans not 
maturing before frost. Home-grown seed selected from early-maturing plants 
is of importance in obtaining a crop regularly. The Pilot (navy) and Great 
Northern (marrow) varieties are dependable for dry beans. Burpee's Saddleback, 
German Black Wax, and Burpee's Kidney are good wax-pod varieties; and 
Stringless Green Pod, Refugee, and Valentine, of the green-podded class, succeed 
equally well. 
Beets. — About the only difficulty met in the culture of beets has been lack of 
germination in certain seasons. If a good stand is obtained, beets, both early 
bunching and those intended for winter storage, do very well. The Eclipse and 
Extra Early Egyptian varieties are good for bunching, and the Detroit Dark 
Red and Crimson Globe with their uniformly smooth turnip-shaped roots can 
be recommended for winter storage. For this purpose they should be planted 
rather late in the season, as otherwise they grow too large and coarse for table use. 
Celery. — Celery does not always succeed under dry-land conditions. Some 
means for watering or irrigating the plants immediately preceding the blanching 
process has been found necessary for the best results. Golden Self-Blanching and 
Silver Self-Blanching varieties are dependable for an early fall crop, and Ford- 
hook, Winter Queen, and Kalamazoo have been found good for winter storage. 
Cabbage. — Cabbage has proved to be one of the most dependable and valuable 
vegetable crops at the field station. The early crop succeeds especially well. 
The fall crop may generally be depended on, but it requires more skill in manage- 
ment in order to prevent the bursting of the heads. The Wakefield varieties and 
Copenhagen Market are the best for the early crop, and Danish Roundhead, 
Enkhuizen Glory, Autumn King, and late-planted Copenhagen Market are good 
for fall and winter use. 
Cauliflower. — The early crop of cauliflower succeeds well, but the heads are 
generally small. Late varieties and early varieties planted late for a fall crop as 
a rule were failures. Burpee's Best Early, Dwarf Erfurt, and Snowball are 
recommended as uniformly reliable varieties. 
Carrots. — Carrots .are very reliable. Good results are obtained from early, 
midseason, and late sowing. Some difficulty in obtaining a good stand has been 
experienced with seed planted after June 1 when the season was dry. Early- 
planted seed yields best, but the roots develop a strong flavor before they are 
harvested. The half-long, stump-rooted types succeed better than short or 
long rooted ones. The Chantenay variety is very reliable, as is also Half-Long 
Danvers. 
Cucumbers. — Cucumbers respond to rich soil and a good supply of moisture. 
Both pickling and White Spine varieties succeed in an average season under dry- 
land conditions. Fordhook Famous, Davis Perfect, and other White Spine 
varieties have done well at the station, as has also Boston Pickling or Early Green 
Prolific. 
Eggplant. — The eggplant is somewhat exacting as to cultural treatment, but 
once established in the field yields moderately well in an average season. Potted 
plants from 3-inch pots are desirable for the best results. The Black Beauty, 
Black Pekin, and Early Dwarf Purple are good varieties for the northern Great 
Plains. 
Lettuce. — Leaf -lettuce varieties succeed well from early and midseason planting 
but give poor results from late-summer planting. Head-lettuce varieties succeed 
best from plants transplanted early in the spring, but some varieties produce 
a fair percentage of heads from early field sowing. Early thinning is necessary 
for good results with field-sown plants. Black-Seeded Simpson and Grand 
Rapids are good leaf varieties, and Wayahead, May King, Salamander, and 
Hanson are reliable heading varieties. 
Muskmelons. — The muskmelon is not entirely reliable. The earliest varieties 
obtainable should be used, and if possible a light, sandy, well-fertilized soil 
should be selected. The Emerald Gem has been the most reliable variety, but 
fair results have been obtained from Eden Gem, Paul Rose, and Hackensack. 
Onions. — From good to very good yields of onions have been obtained each 
year. Early thinning to 2 or 3 inches and frequent cultivation contributed 
much to the success. There was marked improvement in both yield and quality 
on soil that was well fertilized the previous season. The Globe varieties, espe- 
cially the Southport strains, and Australian Brown have given uniformly good 
results, with a small percentage of scallions. 
