1013. 
Ruralisms 
'THFC RURAt NEW-YORKER 
Commercial Lettuce Growing, 
We have a 10-acre field where we want 
to raise lettuce next. Spring. We are 
inexperienced and wish to know how to 
prepare our soil, when to plant seeds, 
how to prepare hotbed, when to trans¬ 
plant, how to plant it, and how to culti¬ 
vate until ready for market. c. b. R. 
New Jersey. 
There are many ways and times for 
growing lettuce. In your section of 
South Jersey you can use the same meth¬ 
ods we use here, for your climate is not 
greatly colder than in Southeast Mary¬ 
land. For the Fall crop in the open 
ground I sowed seed of the Big Boston 
lettuce the first of August and the plants 
are now well up. These will be trans¬ 
planted into heavily manured beds made 
six feet wide with alleys between. The 
plants are set eight inches apart each 
way, and of course all cultivation is 
done by hand. This crop is for Fall 
heading outside. Then the last of Au¬ 
gust I sow again, and these plants are 
set in the frames at same distances as 
those in the open ground. I use sashes 
with two layers of glass, and bank the 
frames well on the outside to keep frost 
from creeping under. Then the double 
glazed sashes will keep out all frost. The 
frames are well stuffed with rotten ma¬ 
nure, and after the plants recover from 
the transplanting heavy application of a 
high-grade commercial fertilizer is worked 
in between the rows. Heavy feeding is 
necessary to make good head lettuce. 
This crop comes off at Christmas and 
New Year, and the frames that grew it 
are then sown to radishes and beets. A 
sowing of the Big Boston lettuce is made 
in a frame under sashes in October and 
these plants are set in the frames in late 
November for the late Winter and early 
Spring heading. A sowing is made in 
early September and the plants are set 
later in open furrows running east and 
west as a Winter protection and in the 
average Winter here they will go through 
all right and head in early Spring. Then, 
as soon as the soil can be worked in good 
order I sow seed in rows and thin out to 
a stand about eight inches apart and 
these make the latest lettuce I grow, com¬ 
ing in May. After that I like to grow 
endive in place of lettuce for the hot 
weather. But whether in frames or in 
the open ground the great necessity is to 
feed the crop heavily. I never use hot¬ 
beds. I can get with such a hardy plant 
as good results with the double glazed 
sashes on a cold frame. Tender things 
like tomatoes and egg plants I start in 
the greenhouse. You will not need a 
hotbed for lettuce if you use the double 
sashes. w. f. massey. 
Squash Borer; Apple Buds. 
1. TV hat is ■ the trouble with my 
squashes? The seeds were planted oil 
new ground, having been in sod for 15 
or 18 years, high and dry. This Spring 
the ground was plowed and worked again 
with a grubbing hoe. The squash seeds 
were planted in the finest of top soil, well 
mixed with horse manure and patent fer¬ 
tilizer. The vines grew very rapidly un¬ 
til recently, when I noticed some vines 
were dying. I discovered large white 
grubs in the heart of the vines. I have 
been told by our local florist that I had 
the squashes planted in the wrong kind 
of ground. 2. Last Fall I budded sev¬ 
eral apple trees with Baldwin buds. Sev¬ 
eral of the buds started and grew very 
rapidly, a few died entirely, and several 
of the buds are yet alive or green, but 
do not sprout. What is the trouble with 
those that do not sprout? j. b. l. 
Dover, N. J. 
1. Your squashes have been attacked 
by squash vine-borer, and as the borer 
lives and inflicts its injury within the 
stem of the plant, it cannot be destroyed 
by the use of insecticides. The only sure 
remedy lies in pulling up the vines as 
soon as they begin to wilt and destroying 
them to prevent the increase of the in¬ 
sect. I have used bisulphide of carbon 
"ith some little success in the destruc¬ 
tion of this insect, but it cannot be de¬ 
pended upon to save all the plants at¬ 
tacked, but it will destroy the borer and 
save many plants that have been at¬ 
tacked. To use the bisulphide take a 
pointed stick about one inch in diameter 
and make a hole three or four inches 
deep in the center of the hill, into which 
pour one to two teaspoonfuls of the bi¬ 
sulphide and immediately cover the hole 
with damp soil to prevent the gas es¬ 
caping. The gas will penetrate the soil 
quite a distance in every direction, and 
destroy all insect life with which it 
comes in contact. Bisulphide of carbon 
is highly inflammable and care must be 
taken that fire is not brought in contact 
with it, or very serious results may fol¬ 
low. The soil or location has nothing 
whatever to do with the matter of your 
squash being attacked by the vine-borer, 
as the insect is not a respecter of soils 
or locations, and a squash vine is food 
for him on low land as well as high land, 
on rich and poor soil, and new and old 
soil; it is all the same to him. Your 
land and manner of planting is all right 
for squash, and all vines you are able 
to save from the borer will no doubt give 
a good account of themselves. 
2. The reason why the buds did not 
start growth is because of their being 
what is called blind or undeveloped bud. 
When budding trees of any kind always 
examine the bud before setting it, to see 
that the bud is full and plump. If other¬ 
wise do not use it, as there is always 
danger of immature buds failing to start 
growth. K . 
Fruits for Georgia. 
Will you give me through The R. N.-Y. 
a , ,°f peaches and apples suited to 
this latitude, to cover the fruiting season? 
I want them for home use, so want eating 
quality. r. T . At 
East Atlanta, Ga. 
Peaches do well in the region of At¬ 
lanta, Ga., and all over that State, with 
few exceptions. The following list will 
be found to be reliable varieties and cover 
the entire season of the ripening of this 
fruit and they are arranged in order of 
ripening or very nearly so. Triumph, 
Hiley, Mountain Rose, Carman, Cham¬ 
pion, Elberta, Belle of Georgia, Crothers, 
Salway and Bilyen. Apples are not so 
successful so far south as Atlanta as 
farther north, but with good care the 
trees will do fairly well. This list will 
be quite suitable for family use, by plant¬ 
ing but very few of the early kinds and 
more of the later ones, which are ar¬ 
ranged in order of ripening: Yellow 
Transparent, Red June, Benoni, Garden 
Royal, Lowell, Golden Sweet, Jefferis, 
Melon, Grimes, Mother, Delicious, Wine- 
sap, York Imperial. n. e. v. d. 
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