House & Garden 
LET THE CHILDREN HELP 
By Taking Over a Sector of the Garden Trenches and Doing Their Share in the Production 
and Distribution of the Food Crop 
FLORENCE SPRING 
A i the present time, when calls upon both 
. time and purse are constant and impera¬ 
tive, and the necessity of each and every one 
doing his full part toward the great end so 
ardently sought by us all is so seriously borne 
in upon us, it is wholly natural that the chil¬ 
dren as well as the grown-ups should feel the 
tremendous stimulation and want to help in 
every way they can. ‘'Can’t I help?” or 
“What can I do?” is the frequent question of 
these little men and women who should be 
encouraged, surely, to feel that their efforts 
are of consequence and importance. 
Sometimes it is not so easy, however, to 
decide in what channels this praiseworthy 
enthusiasm and energy may run to the best 
advantage. One father and mother of my 
acquaintance have helped to solve their par¬ 
ticular problem by arousing an interest in 
commercial gardening—if one may use so 
dignified a term for so modest an enterprise, 
certainly well in accord with the demands of 
the present time. In this particular instance 
the process was simple; but it may easily 
prove more widely suggestive, as a fairly large 
and well stocked vegetable garden is, with the 
present imperative obligation of adding to the 
food supply, an inference not only on the 
farm but also on the small place. 
All garden making tends to liberality, both 
in planning and planting. Nature herself is 
lavish, scattering her seeds by millions and 
protecting her plants and shrubs that they may 
reappear year after year. Having the chil¬ 
dren’s little enterprise in mind, plant still more 
freely, that there may be enough not only for 
that giving and exchanging which are the de¬ 
light of the gardener, but also for the business 
ahead. If the children are old enough, give 
them a corner of the garden for their own in 
which they may raise their own vegetables and 
assume all care of them with what help or 
advice may seem advisable. In this plot they 
may grow their crops, planning those most 
marketable and attractive. If the town hap¬ 
pily includes a School Garden Association, this 
home garden may be under its general rules 
and suggestions, with the wise help and train¬ 
ing that this most valuable organization af¬ 
fords. If not, the parents will surely help 
with advice and practical assistance. 
If it seems best not to make such a division 
of the garden, simply extend and amplify a 
little in the planting and let the children help 
in it, with a pleasing sense of partnership in 
the whole process and the idea that some of 
the surplus shall be theirs. 
T HE first money-maker of the season is 
rhubarb. Let the children double the 
length of the family row and transfer it to 
the sunniest, warmest corner of the garden. 
Fertilize it generously, and pull the stalks be¬ 
fore they are very long. A two or three days’ 
start here trebles or quadruples the price, and 
the young market gardeners may start out with 
a small cartload and bring back many pennies. 
Let me say right here that a necessary piece 
of equipment in the garden enterprise is a 
child's small but strong cart in which the chil¬ 
dren may transport their wares. Whether the 
customers are to be neighbors and friends, the 
town market, or the smiling Italian who ex¬ 
hibits his attractive wares in your locality, 
must depend on circumstances, environment or 
that most potent factor, the parents’ "say-so”. 
In a friendly country neighDorhood the door 
to door system is the most profitable, and if 
the vegetables are of that delicious morning 
freshness and liberally bunched, customers reap 
an equal advantage with the young vendors. 
If, however, this method seems inadvisable, 
the vegetable or fruit dealer will usually be 
glad to take the produce in quantity, however 
small. The country hotel often will give a 
standing order to the young merchants, and 
will be thankful to supply its guests with 
vegetables or berries as fresh as those which 
appear on the home table. 
AS this article is intended as a suggestion 
lx. for the younger children to utilize the sur¬ 
plus of the home table, I shall not open up the 
larger vistas of the asparagus field, the early 
peas, or the attractive possibilities of small 
fruits and berries, for the older boys. Pos¬ 
sibly, if interest is stimulated by small begin¬ 
nings, another inducement may be added to 
the many others for the boys’ remaining on 
the farms. 
The strawberry bed is, however, one of our 
prize assets. It is always too productive for 
family use. The berries ripen thick and fast 
and have a short season. Let the children 
take a few orders beforehand, to supply a box 
or two regularly to each of as many customers 
as desirable. Let the berries be freshly picked 
and generously measured, and good prices may 
be obtained. If the crop focusses at any spe¬ 
cial time, let everything go, and pick the berries 
closely, soliciting orders beforehand, with pre¬ 
serving time in view. The comparatively new 
ever-bearing strawberry is a splendid money¬ 
maker, ripening at least a week earlier than 
the standard varieties; and the first snow falls 
on not only ripe berries, but green ones and 
blossoms as well! Set two or three dozen 
plants, and at the end of two years you may 
go into the “ever-bearing” strawberry plant 
business, so prolific are the thrifty runners. 
There is always a splendid market for both 
the early fruit and that ripening in the fall, 
when it is greatly in demand for the home 
table as well as for gifts to invalids and 
friends. I cannot emphasize too stronglv the 
financial advantages of novelties, or products 
slightly out of season. 
Currants and gooseberries, too, are crops 
that are easily extended. Let the children take 
cuttings and start them themselves. This will 
add greatly to their interest. The slips root 
easily and require little care. Transplant 
them the second year to permanent position in 
rows. The fruit is larger and more perfect 
on these young plants and will be sure to sell 
well for jellies and preserves. The children 
should always try to get orders in advance 
for these special and also perishable crops, so 
that there may be no loss. 
Plant long rows of early carrots and beets, 
and when large enough for use pull theny 
wash them, and tie them neatly in bunches 
with raffia. It is surprising how much better 
a price they bring when attractively bunched 
than when sold by measure. The French 
Forcing and the Danvers Half Long are the 
most satisfactory varieties of carrots. For 
beets, we have planted Crimson Globe and 
Crosby’s Egyptian with great success. 
A very popular ware consists of bunches of 
soup vegetables. These sell readily both at 
the market and at the kitchen door. Each 
consists of a carrot or two, a couple of onions, 
a sprig of parsley, a small turnip and a leaf 
or two of cabbage. If these bunches are sold 
late enough in the season, add a small tomato 
on the stem and a sprig of celery. As suggested 
above, have the vegetables for these small 
bunches washed very clean. These “specials” 
of carrots and beets, and especially the soup 
bunches, are so pretty and attractive that they 
almost sell themselves. 
Lettuce is easily raised and very salable, 
and as it is almost impossible not to have too 
much mature at one time for the family use, 
the surplus may be a source of profit for the 
children. For the small home garden it is 
best transplanted from the seed bed into 
squares, the plants being set about 9" apart, 
d his when headed makes a compact green 
mass, easily watered and kept moist—a neces¬ 
sity for well headed lettuce. The children’s 
customers will find these fresh heads a very 
different article from the wilted plants often 
obtained from the market. 
String beans are very prolific and usually 
come on with a rush. It is such an advan¬ 
tage to keep them closely picked, that they are 
surely one of the examples of eating your cake 
and having it too! Let the children help you 
keep them small and tender. When arranging 
your wares for sale it is a good idea to have 
plenty of parsley so that a sprig or two may 
be thrown in with each purchase. This is one 
of the advantages that the children’s customers 
will reap and appreciate. And while on the 
subject of parsley, plant an extra row in the 
summer, pot the small plants in the fall and 
sell them for kitchen window-gardening. Every 
housekeeper likes to have a pot of parsley 
for use in cookery, and it will sell readily. 
Chives may also be planted and potted to sell 
in this way. 
W HEN tomato time comes, the surplus is 
easily marketable, and here again much 
is gained by being early in the field. The 
extra tomato crop is made more attractive by 
fine selected fruit being offered with the salad 
bowl in view. A head of lettuce, a tiny twist 
of chives and parsley, a couple of fine red 
tomatoes and two or three of the Yellow Plum 
type may be grouped and sold to more advan¬ 
tage for a salad than separately. Earliana is 
a delicious salad tomato and, as its name im¬ 
plies, one of the first to mature. Stone is one 
of the best late varieties. Cucumbers are good 
sellers, as are. also summer squash. These 
have the additional advantage of being easily 
picked and clean at the start. 
Sometimes a few novelties will prove more 
attractive than the old standbys. We find a 
bed of New Zealand spinach specially good. 
