3io 
VEGETABLE GARDENING 
moisture. There are various methods of starting plants 
out of doors, but if the fundamental principles are under- 
stood, there should be no trouble in getting a good stand 
of plants. There must be a full supply of moisture for 
not less than two weeks, and the soil must be suffi- 
ciently friable to permit the delicate plants to push 
through to the surface. A liberal proportion of humus 
will make conditions more favorable. 
The land is often thrown up into beds, although this 
is unnecessary in well-drained gardens. Sowing in 
drills is much better than broadcasting, because the soil 
may then be cultivated. The seeds should have a slight 
covering of fine soil and the beds or rows watered, if 
necessary. The overhead system of irrigation is espe- 
cially valuable in starting celery plants in outdoor seed 
beds. 
In some sections it is necessary to start the plants for 
the late crop in beds protected by board windbreaks and 
by cloth coverings. In other sections, when the sun is 
particularly hot, cloth or lath screens must be provided 
to shade the plants until they are well established. 
The rows are generally I foot apart. This provides 
plenty of space for wheel hoe cultivation until the plants 
are transplanted. The usual practice is to transfer from 
the seed bed to ground where the crop is to mature. 
Some growers prefer to transplant once before setting 
in the field, and thus secure stronger and more vigor- 
ous plants. When this intermediate shift is not made, 
the plants should be thinned to induce stockiness. 
404. Soil preparation. — In the North new muck land 
is usually plowed and sometimes subsoiled in the fall. 
The winter exposure to frost improves the structure and 
prepares the soil for cropping the next year with corn 
or some other cultivated crop. In most instances, celery 
should not be planted until the second year. Whatever 
the character of the land, early plowing is important, 
