The Carden 
r 
T HIS is the month of work to main- 
tain the pace we have already set, 
meaning especially watering and 
holding moisture by cultivation. 
Preparation should be made at this time 
also for the proper spraying of crops; from 
now until frost it is a battle with all kinds 
of insects and diseases, you must fight 
these invaders or suffer the loss of your 
garden. It is true, however, that with very 
few exceptions the bugs that infest the 
garden are very easily controlled by per- 
sistent spraying, and it is also true that 
most diseases are caused primarily by insects which weaken the plants and leave 
them in a susceptible condition. 
How about installing some sort of watering system in your garden? You 
will soon need one if you haven’t already done so. Some of these systems are 
really wonderful in the results they accomplish, and while the first cost may 
seem high, figured on a five year basis they are more economical than a hose. 
See the article on page 258. 
P EAS should be plentiful this month. Pick every day when the vines are 
bearing and don’t let them get hard and yellow before using them. If 
certain varieties seem hard or dry, it is because they have been 
left on the vine too long a time. 
Keep the pole beans tied up. By 
In the Vegetable doing this right now, when they have 
Garden just started to “run,” considerable labor 
will be saved later on . 
If you haven’t already set out eggplant and peppers, 
attend to it at once. 
Use spinach when it is young and succul- 
ent; don’t wait until it gets old and yellow. 
Never allow the plants to suffer for want of 
water. 
Keep the potatoes well cultivated and 
sprayed; hill them when they are in flower. 
Okra sometimes does not come well from 
early sowings and it is a good plan (if you 
have the room) to make a second sowing of 
this plant around the first of June. 
Keep all vegetables properly thinned out 
as they require it. Don’t neglect it until the 
plants are badly crowded as the damage is 
then done. All sorts of farm crops must also 
be thinned. 
All plants that require staking should be 
attended to when they are first feeling the 
need of it. Keep tomatoes tied up; peppers 
and eggplants should be supported somewhat. 
Stop cutting asparagus as soon as you feel you can do 
without it. You can’t cut until August and expect good 
shoots next year; the plants must have some chance to 
rebuild themselves. Also watch out for the asparagus 
beetle and meet him with a good dose of poison. 
C ULTIVATION of the ground is one of the most 
necessary of all operations. No matter how good the 
soil is it cannot produce good crops without proper cultivation. Cultivation 
is the one thing which it is impossible to over do; cultivate once a week 
and have good results, cultivate twice a week and have 
Remember to better results. Keep the surface of the ground stirred 
Cultivate apd thoroughly pulverized all the time, and always cultivate 
directly after a rain which will help to conserve the moisture. 
Cultivate frequently during rainy weather, as this operation also helps to 
relieve any trouble caused by too much water. That may seem misleading 
but it is so. By stirring the surface you loosen up the soil which aerates the 
top soil, causing it to dry. This prevents the evaporation of the moisture 
from the soil below from which the roots get their nourishment. On the 
other hand, when cultivating during rainy 
spells when the ground is wet and soggy, 
you admit air which relieves the tendency 
to stem rot, oftentimes so serious during 
extended wet periods. Cultivation is fine 
exercise, too, whether you use a hoe or 
cultivator. 
Certain crops grow rapidly at this sea- 
son of the year and they oftentimes ex- 
haust the surrounding soil, and if nourish- 
ment is not furnished the result is a 
stunted growth. I am and always have 
been an ardent advocate of liquid food 
for plants. It is easily applied, is quick in results, and allows more latitude 
to the user than any other form of fertilizing. There are several forms 
of concentrated plant foods on the market and liquid manures of all 
kinds are very good. Onions, parsnip, salsify and such crops can all be 
fed lightly this month and more plentifully later in the season. Other 
crops just newly set (tomatoes, eggplant, squash, etc.) can also be fed by 
this method later in the season. 
D O YOU suppose the robins or 
cat bird will observe the 
neutrality of your strawberry bed? 
Wouldn’t it be well to protect it? 
A net is best. A cat in 
Small a wire cage will do good 
Fruits work; a lot of strings 
run along the rows with 
white cloth strips attached will 
also help. 
Keep the muskmelons well 
sprayed. Remember that there is 
positively no known remedy for 
blight. Bordeaux mixture will nearly always 
prevent it, but will not cure it. 
B USH beans, beets, brussels sprouts, cab- 
bage, carrots, cauliflower, chard, corn, 
cucumbers, endive, kale, kohlrabi, lettuce, 
leeks, muskmelon, mustard greens, radishes, 
rutabaga, spinach, toma- 
Vegetables to toes may be sown. 
Sow Now Make a couple of sow- 
ings of beets and carrots 
this month. Eat these vegetables when they 
are young. 
A sowing or two of cucumbers can 
be made this month. Protect the plants 
when small from the squash bug and cut- 
worm. 
The winter crop of celery should be sown 
at this time. Be sure to put in plenty of seed 
as it is far better to throw away 100 seedlings 
than be ten short. Prick off the plants in a 
coldframe or a prepared bed where they can 
be better taken care of. 
Late cabbage, cauliflower, and broccoli can 
now be sown in flats or boxes and transferred 
to a prepared bed in the same way that celery is handled. 
A couple of sowings of beans can be made this month, and during wet spells 
look out for rust. Bordeaux mixture will prevent it. 
Sow lettuce frequently and in small patches at this time of the year. When 
putting out the young plants select a semi-shaded place or make preparations 
to shade them slightly as the strong sun in summer causes the heads to run to 
seed quickly. 
A few English frame cucumbers can be grown in the open, or a coldframe is 
better still if you have one. Lay down a few pieces of pea brush for the plants 
to grow over so that they will be off the ground. 
Several sowings of com can be made this month. In small gardens rows are 
THE MONTH'S 
REMINDER 
COMPILED WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO THE HOME GARDEN. FROM 
THE TEN YEARS’ DIARIES OF A PRACTICAL EXPERT GARDENER 
For reckoning dates, the latitude of New York City is generally taken as a 
standard. In applying the directions to other localities, allow six 
days’ difference for every hundred miles of latitude 
251 
