Use of Fertilizers in a Garden 
Can you give information to us who live in villages 
and have small gardens regarding the use of fertilizers 
and nitrate of soda? JIovv much and how to use, and 
when? Owing to the scarcity of stable manure, which 
is impossible for us to get any move, it is necessary for 
us to use a substitute. Is there a special fertilizer 
for flowers and shrubs? G, B. ». 
T HIS will serve to answer dozens of similar ques¬ 
tions from people wlio have small gardens. As 
a rule, it does not pay to buy the chemicals and 
make a home mixture for these small places. It is 
usually more economical to buy one of the ready- 
mixed fertilizers—which are now prepared for any 
crop. For gardening a 4-8-10 mixture such as was 
described on page -102 will be suitable. Carden cul¬ 
ture requires heavy feeding. We advise at least 
1.000 lbs. per acre of such a mixture. Remember 
that there are 43,560 square feet in an acre. 
Measure your garden, and by comparing its area 
with that of an acre you can figure how much fer¬ 
tilizer you need. 
We do not advise plowing or spading the fertilizer 
under. It is better left in the upper soil after plow¬ 
ing. Its tendency will be to wash down. Fit the 
soil properly before fertilizing. There 
is a difference of opinion about apply- 
ing the chemicals. Some prefer to 
scatter or broadcast the fertilizer 
evenly over the garden surface and 
rake it In. The theory of this is that 
the plant roots run out everywhere all 
through the upper soil, and tints it. is 
better to have the fertilizer well scat- ~ * 
tored. The other extreme is to put all jwni^ .. 
the fertilizer in the hill or drill near 
the seed. We think a combination of iSSi*-^*'* ^ 
these plans is best, and we would 
broadcast about half the fertilizer and 
scatter the rest near the seed or young SBBEE ffi ftg. 
Be careful not to put the fertilizer 
in direct contact with the seed, but 
mix with soil when planting. For ex¬ 
ample. in planting potatoes the seed 
pieces may be put at the bottom of - —2— 
the hill or furrow—with a little soil 
scraped over them. Then the fertilizer 
can be put on top of this soil—not in 
a lump, but scattered widely over and 
through the furrow. Tn many cases it 
is better not to fertilize in hill or drill 
until the plants are of fair size. The 
part of the fertilizer broadcast and 
raked in will carry the young plant 
along, and then the rest of the fer¬ 
tilizer can be scattered along the rows. 
For instance, in growing corn it is a 
favorite plan to wait until the plants 
are 4 to 5 in. high and then scatter 
the fertilizer around the hill. Tn every 
case the fertilizer should be promptly 
raked into the soil. Do not leave it 
on top. - 
Nitrate of soda is not a full fer¬ 
tilizer. It is used as a stimulant when 
plants do not grow rapidly. It con¬ 
tains nitrogen, but no potash or phos¬ 
phoric acid. For garden culture per¬ 
haps as good a method as any is to dissolve about Jersey City, etc., used to roll into this section, used 
a tablespoonful of the nitrate in a gallon of water very largely for the muskraelon crop, but today the 
ai d pour it along the rows of vegetables or flowers number of manure cars has decreased very notiee- 
— not closer Ilian H in. to the plants. Many plants ably, and will continue to do so unless the iwrice 
have been scorched, if not ruined, by putting nitrate drops enough to justify its purchase and use. High 
of soda too close tn them. Young fruit trees in par- freight rates add to the cost of the manure, until 
tieular. tomato and cabbage plants are often ruined now we cannot afford to buy and use manure for 
in this way. this crop, and as a result we are turning to green 
In-many cases gardeners have a large or small manures, especially legumes, for the organic matter 
supply of chicken manure. Remember that this, as that our light soils need. 
well as any other kind of manure, is always made j u 1921 . we planted about 2,348 acres in musk- 
mot e ^ efficient ^hj using acid phosphate with it. melons throughout this county. This was about a 20 
( bemieal feitilizers ""ill pro\ ide. abundance of plant cent increase over 1020 , and we expect a 10 to 15 
food for a gaiden. but (here are two other essentials p el . increase this year. Our varieties are 
lime and organic* matter. Most garden crops are mainly members of the Pollock family, such as Pol- 
lime-lovers— that is, they do better when the soil is lock No. 25, as well as Pearl Pink Meats and 
limed every three or four years. The rate of nppli- E den Gem. The Pollock .10-25 has proven very saf- 
calion is about 1,500 lbs. to (he acre. Tl will be isfactory here and wijl be the main variety planted 
better to lime about one-third of the garden each this yenr . Last ye ar the market was very good on 
joai. planting such crops as potatoes and straw- p car i Pink Meats, and for that reason many more 
berries as far as possible away from the years of acres of that variety will be planted in 1922 than 
liming. For instance, when potatoes are dug use was planted in 1021 
lime where they grew, and put other crops on the rn . , . .. , . , , 
, , ... . . . The general rotation is corn, sweet potatoes, musk- 
potato ground for two years. To provide organic 
„ ,, melons or cucumbers. Crimson clover, and theu hack 
matter keep the soil constantly covered with some 
growing crop like rye or clover, and spade or plow int0 corn * We also - nnv tomatoes, beans, white po¬ 
ol l such growth into the soil. When material of this tatoes, etc., but these crops do not enter into our 
sort rots, it furnishes a mass of vegetable matter, regular rotation ordinarily. We realize that rnusk- 
which holds moisture like a sponge, and is available melons should follow the clover for best results, but 
for the plant, roots when needed. this would not suit our conditions as well as the 
T HIS important crop was introduced into this f ore j.j, e niuskmelon c 
county about 23 or 24 years ago, and is still experiences of other.- 
one of the most popular truck crops grown in this g 00( j resu itg with u 
section. Figures supplied by one of the railroad land, 
companies, show that in the season of 1921 there o llt . growers plant 
were 356,158 carriers or crates of muskmelons (-p e distances varv fi 
shipped from this section. Using these figures as a l]sua i distance is abo 
basis it is safe to assume that there were Over 400,- out in the earlv Win 
000 crates grown and shipped from this county in ] lorse turning plow. 1 
1921. Conditions here are almost ideal for the pro- to 12 tons of nianuri 
duction of this crop. The climatic conditions provide ]i nie is needed, it is ] 
the heat, sunlight and moisture, without, except oc- to 1,000 lbs. per acre, 
oasionally. supplying an over-abundance of moisture an q quality very matt 
whicli injures the quality of the melons. The season j s sour or acid. Vfte 
of 1921 was just suited to the growing of good qual- the furrows are “rui 
ity melons, as the rainfall was very light. No bet- with 3 to 5 in. of soil, 
ter melons were grown in the United States than a j, uU t one month be 
were grown here last year. About the first of Ma] 
The methods of growing the muskmelons are from 500 to 800 lbs. 0 
changing somewhat, due to the high price, poor a one-row distributor 
quality and scarcity of stable manure. Thousands and left this way unt 
of cars of manure from Philadelphia. New York, is sown here from Aj 
Cultivation starts as soon as the 
plants appear above the ground, and 
continues until the vines interfere. We 
get better results by keeping the mid¬ 
dles open and the vines trained up on 
the rows than we do when the vines 
are allowed to take root between rows, 
especially in the early part of the sea¬ 
son. Spraying has never been done to 
any extent in this section, but we have 
dusted to control the striped beetle and 
wilt with almost 100 per cent control 
in the case of the beetle and very good 
results with the wilt. Aphids, or 
plant lice, are troublesome at times, 
but we try to spot the first plants af¬ 
fected, and bury or destroy these 
plants at once. In the season of 1920 
rust and anthracnose damaged many 
plants, but neither of these two dis¬ 
eases is very prevalent. c,. r. c. 
Salisbury, Md. 
Peonies and roses make a very good combination for dooryard or garden. When 
planting close to the house, or around the porch, there is risk of setting the plants 
in poor, sterile subsoil, thrown out when digging the cellar. In this case it is well 
worth while to dig it out. and fill the trench with fertile soil. Wistarias are often 
slow to bloom from this cause, when planted in such a situation. 
Fruit Growers and Foreigners 
T HE statistics given on page 333 
regarding the number of bearing 
apple trees are figures I have been 
wanting to get for some time, so am 
very glad to see them in print. The 
decline of the fruit trees, especially 
here in Southwestern Michigan, is a 
subject to which I have given consid¬ 
erable thought and attention. I be¬ 
lieve I have the correct answer to this question. 
From my experience, covering trips to hundreds of 
farms in this section in the past few years, I have 
arrived at the conclusion that the decline of the 
fruit trees is due to the fact that so many foreigners 
have come in and bought up the farms, and with 
very few exceptions either they do not want the 
fruit or are too ignorant to care for these orchards 
properly and let them run out. 
For example, within sight of my home is the 
remnant of an old orchard, situated on an almost 
ideal location, and which old settlei*s tell me has 
produced wonderful crops of fine apples. The pres¬ 
ent owner, a foreigner, is struggling along trying to 
eke out an existence by working the land, and has 
let this once valuable orchard almost die out. when 
I would rather have taken my chances on the profits 
that might have been made nut of it. than I would 
on all lie can make on the balance of his SO acres. 
Almost without exception the prominent fruit grow¬ 
ers here in Southwestern Michigan are “bred in the 
bone” Americans, many of them being men whose 
fathers were in the fruit business before them. 
There is also quite a sprinkling of newer fruit men 
here who are making a success of fruit growing, and 
they also are nearly all Americans. 
Your statistics boar mo out in my statement, as 
our largest foreign population is in the East and 
Middle West, where the greatest decrease in apple 
trees has been, while in the Far West we find the 
4 Trotter Hauling the Cultivator. Fig. 237. Fee Cage o'/6 
