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THE GRAND JUNCTION SEED CO., Grand Junction, Colorado 
We Want to Help You Succeed 
O UR INTEREST in your welfare does not end until the seed purchased has produced a crop 
that is satisfactory to you. Our success depends on the success you have with crops grown 
from Mile High seed. You will find here a few suggestions that we hope will help the beginner. 
CULTURE SUGGESTIONS TOR THE HOME 
GARDENER 
Good seed is very important; poor seed is expen¬ 
sive if it costs you nothing. Purchase seed that has 
been tested not only for germination but for type 
and quality as well. 
If your growing season is short, select varieties 
that mature early. This catalog will help you, as 
it gives the approximate time to maturity of all 
varieties. 
SOIL 
A fertile, sandy loam soil is 
best for vegetables or flowers; 
clay soil can be greatly improved 
by fertilizing with barnyard ma¬ 
nure, well rotted straw, or other 
humus. This will not only add 
fertility, but will lighten the soil 
and make it hold moisture bet¬ 
ter, and also put it in better con¬ 
dition for irrigation, where irri¬ 
gation is used. 
If possible, have the ground 
fertilized and plowed in the fall 
to a depth of 7 or 8 inches. This 
will help to destroy insects, and 
freezing has a very desirable ef¬ 
fect on the freshly plowed soil. 
PLANTING 
If you use irrigation, it is very 
important to have the ground 
well levelled, sloping in one di¬ 
rection only, and to have it well 
creased so water will not stand 
where seed is planted. If pos¬ 
sible, water the ground before 
planting and have a uniform 
moisture; then plant when soil 
is dry enough to work well. 
If you are depending on rain¬ 
fall* plant when soil is well 
moistened on the surface if pos¬ 
sible. 
Spinach, lettuce, radish, peas, 
and. onions are quite hardy and 
can be planted as soon as severe 
freezing is over and the soil can 
be well prepared. Large quan¬ 
tities of spinach, lettuce, and 
onions are being planted in the 
fall, about October 1st to 15th, 
with good results in our section. 
Although temperatures often 
drop well below zero, it is found 
that they do not winter kill to any extent and that 
they produce much earlier in the spring. 
Beans, beets, sweet corn, carrots, parsnip, and all 
the vining varieties of vegetables are tender and 
should not be planted until frost danger is past. 
Cabbage and tomatoes can be planted in the open 
where the season is not too short. Plant several 
seeds in each hill where you wish a plant to remain; 
cover about % of an inch. When plants are well 
established, they may be thinned, leaving one sturdy 
plant in each space. 
Cabbage, tomatoes, peppers, cauliflower, eggplant, 
and celery, when an early crop is desired, are usu¬ 
ally planted in house boxes or in hotbeds. 
Further planting instructions as to spacing and 
amount of seed required will be found on the pages 
where each variety is listed. 
CRUSTED SOIL 
This is caused by a heavy shower of rain followed 
by the hot sun. Nearly all types of soil have a ten¬ 
dency to crust; heavy clay soil will quite often form 
a crust so hard and thick it will prevent even corn, 
beans, cucumbers and other of the largest and hardi¬ 
est sprouts from coming through. A very light crust 
will often destroy carrots, parsnips, and the smaller 
seeds. If this crust is broken, you will find the 
sprouts curled up and turning yellow underneath. 
Where irrigation is used, a light watering quite 
often will absorb this crust. 
Where dry farming methods are used, this crust is 
often a serious problem. If growth has not advanced 
enough so that the sprouts are encrusted, the crust 
can be broken up with a garden rake, or in larger 
tracts with a light harrow. 
We find that quite often seed is condemned when 
A Field of Stowell’s Evergreen Sweet Corn 
the crop failure has been caused by crusted soil. 
CULTIVATION 
As soon as the plants are well above the ground, 
they should be cultivated. This can be done with a 
hoe or hand cultivator. Small plants such as carrots, 
onions, lettuce, beets, radishes, etc., should have the 
weeds removed and the ground should be worked 
close to the plants. This can be done best with a 
hand weeder. 
A crust never should be al¬ 
lowed to remain on the surface 
of the soil; frequent cultivations 
will break up the crust, prevent 
moisture from escaping, and al¬ 
low air to penetrate to the plant 
roots. 
Where irrigation is used we 
would suggest a good cultivation 
after each watering. 
Care should be taken not to 
cultivate too close to the plants 
after the roots have spread out. 
HOUSE BOXES AND HOTBEDS 
If you have a cold climate and 
short season, or wish to mature 
vegetables as early as possible, 
plant in house boxes, transplant 
to an outside hotbed, setting 
plants 1 y 2 inches each way. 
Watch the temperature in the 
hotbed closely and ventilate if 
too warm. Plants may be hard¬ 
ened by leaving the cover of the 
hotbed slightly open at first and 
finally removing it altogether be¬ 
fore the plants are set in the 
open ground. 
A house box is very satisfac¬ 
tory for starting a few plants. 
See that it is not water tight 
and that all surplus water can 
drain off so that the soil will not 
become water-soaked. 
A light, fertile, loam soil is 
very important for the house box 
or hotbed. Seed may be planted 
in February or March. Do not 
cover seed to exceed % inch; 
water several times a day by 
sprinkling lightly. To prevent 
the soil from crusting, keep from 
bright sunlight until the sprouts 
are above the ground. Do not 
place the box where the heat will be above 80 de¬ 
grees at -any time. 
Be sure to have the soil well moistened, but not 
sticky, when plants are pulled for transplanting. If 
the soil is dry and hard, all of the fine roots will be 
pulled off. 
The individual plant boxes that are listed on page 
44 are a great help to bring plants to early maturity. 
Use these when transplanting to the lmtbed. The 
plants can then be set in the open ground without 
disturbing the roots. The extra cost is very small. 
CONSTRUCTION OP HOTBED 
Select a place with protection from the north; dig 
a pit about 18 inches deep, not over 4 feet wide, with 
length enough to give you the space required; fill in 
12 to 14 inches of fresh horse manure and pack well; 
cover to level of the ground with good soil. 
Build a frame of boards 16 inches high on the 
north side, 12 inches on the south; bank outside with 
soil to keep out cold and to prevent water from run¬ 
ning into the pit. The manure will supply heat and 
absorb any surplus water from the plants. 
The cover can be of glass, or Lite-O-Glas, which 
is much cheaper and has been proved to be more 
satisfactory for hotbed purposes. »(See Lite-O-Glaa 
on page 59.) 
COLDPRAME 
A coldframe can be constructed much the same as 
the hotbed described above, without digging a pit 
and adding manure. A coldframe is quite often used 
successfully and will protect plants to several de¬ 
grees below the freezing point. 
