142 
THE 
AMERICAN 
garde^n. 
June, 
£@ 
SEASONABLE HINTS. 
Nearly all kinds of vegetables may still be 
sown and planted, and later even, for suc¬ 
cessive crops. It should be the constant 
aim of the gardener to have all his ground 
occupied as much as possible, tliat is, by use¬ 
ful plants. Weeds -will soon enough occupy 
any land that is not kept under constant culti¬ 
vation. Beets, Beans, Corn, Cucumbers, Mel¬ 
ons, Squash, Peas, Potatoes, Salsify, Pars¬ 
nips, and many other vegetables may be 
sown or planted this month. 
Firming the Soil when sowing seeds is of 
far more importance than most persons ai’e 
aware of, and many faihu’es are the direct 
result of such omission. This fact was for¬ 
cibly brought to our mind last year. AVe 
had so^^^l two rows of Parsnips in very dry 
ground. One row had been firmly packed 
by walking on it, when a sudden shower 
prevented treating the other in the same 
manner, and supposing that the rain would 
have a similar eft’ect, the soil was never 
packed. But our supposition proved erro¬ 
neous. The fii-st row came up quickly and 
vigorousl 5 ', whUe the second sprouted very 
slowly and came up so poorly that it was 
thought not worth cultivating, and was 
afterwards spaded under and re-sown. 
Dr. E. L. Sturtevanfs experiments in this 
dh-ection are highly instructive, and give un- 
mistakiible evidence of the great importance 
of firming the soU. Oftentimes, Corn that 
is planted early, says theDoctor, is put in the 
ground whUe the land is in a lumpy condition, 
and no pressure brought to bear to bring the 
soU in close contact with the Corn. The open 
spaces thus left about the seed tend to re¬ 
tard, and, under the vaiying conditions of 
heat and moistui'e, often destroy, the germi- 
native process. So marked is its influence, 
that the per cent of germination by actu.al 
trial (as observed between two plats, both of 
which w'ere planted at the same time,but upon 
one of Tvhich the soil was firmly pressed upon 
the seed with the foot, and upon the othei' 
the seed carefully covered by means of a 
hoe in the ordinary method) was largely in 
favor of the trodden plat. This trial was 
in accordance with a practical experience in 
farming, whereby it was found th.at the gain 
in crop through the use of a western Corn 
planter whose wheel compressed the soil 
over the seed as planted, compensated largely 
for the first expense of the machine. 
Cucumbers for pickling are .an hnjtortant 
crop in various sections of our country. In 
the vicinity of New Tork the 20th of .June 
is considered the correct time for planting 
the seed. A week earlier or later makes but 
little dill'erenee, except that in planting much 
earlier the vines are in danger of falling a 
prey to the striped bug. The principal con¬ 
ditions for a successful pickle cj-op are rich, 
rather moist soil, and perfect eultlvjition 
from the day the plants show themselves 
till the vines cover the ground. As soon 
as there arc any pickles of proper size, 
they have to be picked, oi- better cut oil’ with 
a sharp, small knife or a pair of scissors, 
continuing to pick the vines cienu every othei- 
day at the utmost; better every day during 
the height of the growing season. 
SUOOESS WITH MELONS AT j 
For a number of years I 
ing good Watermelons by making . ^ 
sand. The sand was spread, 
face of the ground, which was a . y ^ ^ 
to tlie depth of six inches, and the scec s 
were planted in hills enriched with fine m.^ 
mu-e Holes were dug through the sand .an 
into the earth underneath. The ,, 
would last for a few years, wdieu it would 
have to be renewed. . 
Last year I tried another plan, which 
proved more successful than the old one, 
and less troublesome. The Watennelon 
plants .are started in the hot-bed, w'hich is 
simply a frame with wdndow' sash over, and 
horse manure under to furnish the heat. 
The seeds arc put into flowmr pots filled 
with sand and bedded into sand on tO]) 
of the manure. AVhen these plants come on 
they are thinned to one in each pot, and m 
when they are large enough and the ground 
has become warm, they arc transplanted in¬ 
to hills, in which finely rotted manure has 
been mixed with the soil. 
The process of transplanting is very sim¬ 
ple, as the plant is readily loosened in the 
pot and comes out with the sand and roots 
in a snug ball. The earth is firmly pressed 
around the plant and then a circle of sand 
about three feet in diameter is placed around 
it. A’ery little more attention is necessary, 
except to keep the weeds down. The hill of 
sand attracts the heat which is necessary to 
mature this semi-tropical fruit. A small 
pile of stones would answer the pui’iiose 
very well. It is an advantage to plant the 
AA’'atermelons on the south side of a stone 
wall, or a board fence, as they will reflect 
the heat of the sun. 
Tlie pots must not be filled with compost 
or manure, else worms may be bred in them 
which will destroy the plants ^yhilc yet in 
the pots. Clear sand is the best. Under 
this plan the finest varieties of AVatcrinelons 
in.ay be had in abundance oven in high lati¬ 
tudes. Muskmelons do not require so much 
heat, but may be advanced, and ripen earlier, 
by starting tliera in pots as described. A 
hill of sand around Mu.skmelons will also 
promote their growth and early ripening. 
F. D. CuitTis. 
characteristic of some other vegetables. I 
would not by any means be understood as 
condemning ail the new varieties of Squashes. 
. There are some of evident merit, and these 
maybeimprdved upon in time, while theolder 
sorts may lose tlieir vitality and become su¬ 
perseded by others. , • 
I was very favorably impressed with the 
Olive, which I tested the past season. It is 
rather late in ripening, and as mine were not 
planted as early as they should have been, 
they did not mature properly, yet they grew 
to a fine size, and considering the unfavor¬ 
able season, were of unusually good qu.ality 
and kept very well; one specimen was pre¬ 
served in perfectly good condition until Feb¬ 
ruary 3d. I have not tested the Pineapple, 
but several of niy acquaintances who have, 
pronounce it watery and unpalatable. 
The Perfect Gem seems to meet with favor 
many localities, but it is absolutely worth¬ 
less with us, in Vermont, and this is the ver¬ 
dict given it by others who have tested it in 
this locality. W. H. Hand. 
MOEE ABOUT SQUASHES. 
The article in a recent issue of 'I'liio Amicu- 
lOAX Garden on “The Squa.sli and its Cul¬ 
ture,” was botli interesting and in.structive 
and suggested a coinpari.son with my own 
experience. 
Considering the nmribei-of now varieties, 
both early and late, introduced within the 
past few years, it is surprising tliat there 
has not been more dc.cided improvement. 
It is a question, whether among all the new 
sorts, we have any that are really better 
adapted in quality or productiveness for g(;n- 
eral culture than the old varieties of twenty- 
fi vc or more years ago. 'I’liese old stand-bys,— 
the.SummerCrookneck for early, lloston Mar¬ 
row as intermediate, and llidibard for gen- 
oral use,—have stood the test of time, and are 
yet more iiopular thronghoiit the country 
than those of recent origin. 
1 he Boston Mari-ow may have iletei'io- 
rated somewhat in ipiality in the past few 
years, but in yield it Is fully up to the old 
standard, and docs not appear to have the 
tendency to “run out” which Is so marked a 
SWEET POTATOES IN KENTUCKY. 
A loose, sandy soil is generally considered 
best for Sweet Potatoes, but h6re we prefer 
a rich, or moderately rich, firm soil. The 
ground is broken thoroughly, and well 
pulverized; then ridges are thrown up with 
a siding plow, from four to five feet apart, 
from middle to middle; then the Avhole is 
gone over with the hoe, the soil drawn up 
into a smooth, even ridge, a little flattened 
on the top. This work is done just as the 
slips are ready for setting, as then the soil 
is fresh and the plants will have the start of 
the grass and other weeds. 
AVhen the slips in the hot-bed are large 
enough draw them on an evening, have a 
puddle of dirt and water ready, into which 
stir well the roots, then plant them in the 
ridges, about eighteen inches apart, in holes 
made with a small wooden paddle or a 
trowel; then draw the soil to the plants, and 
press it firmly about the roots. No more 
need be done to insure then- surviving, im- 
Icss the weather is very dry and hot, then 
they should be watered for a few evenings. 
So soon as the slips show that they are 
firmly established, and begin to grow, go 
over the ridges with a hoe, stirring the soil 
slightly, taking care to destroy all other 
growtli. I never use the plow after tin-ow¬ 
ing iq) the ridges; but stir the surface Avell 
with the hoc, and as often as the soil seems 
to need stirring or becomes weedy. This is 
done till the vines spread so as to prevent 
further cultivation. 
'I'lie sli[)a arc raised in a hot-bed by throw¬ 
ing in first a layer of forest leaves, sulU- 
eient that when pressed down it will be live 
or six inches thick; then fresh stable manure 
over this to thedopthot aboutafoot,pressed 
down. On this spread rich, loose, loamy 
earth; rake smooth; then press the Potatoes in 
this close together, but not so that they touch 
e.nch other, tlion cover with rich loam, or com¬ 
post. li',ai-th may bo thrown up around the 
sides of the frame to keep in tho heat, 
thougli wo sohlom find this uocossary. Tho 
1 ) 0(1 should ho covered against cold and rain, 
till the plants begin to appear, when it may 
bo left 0 ))en to tho weather; but previous to 
this, as ralu is excluded, tho bed should bo 
Crccpicntly watorod with tepid water. 
James I. Baiku. 
