16 CHAS. R. AITKEN -_ - 



DELHI, NEW YORK 


CUCUMBER 
Cucumbers thrive best in africh, loamy 
soil, not containing too much sand. A rather 
heavy soil is preferable to sandy soil. The 
most successful growers fertilize heavily 
with barnyard manure, scattering evenly 
over the surface to a depth of 2 or 3 inches, 
disked thoroughly, then plowed under 6 to 8 
inches deep, then well harrowed and floated; 
this gives an excellent seed bed. 
You can now plant with your garden drill 
rows 4 feet apart, drilling in about 3 pounds 
of seed to the acre, covering the seed about 
one inch in depth. You can follow the dirt 
mark and cultivate before the plants come 
up. Cultivate often. When plants have four 
to six leaves, thin to one plant every 18 
inches. Keep the cultivator going as long 
as you can get through the rows. If under 
irrigation, water once a week lightly and 
always cultivate between irrigations until 
the crop is laid by. Keep the cucumbers 
picked off as fast as they reach the desired 
A-C (New) 
This variety has proven very popular 
among the large Cucumber growers. The 
plants grow strong and vigorous, producing 
a good crop of fancy grade fruits. The fruits 
are smooth with well rounded ends, 8 to 9 in. 
long, % to 2 in. in diameter. A good market 
and shipping variety. Pkt., .10; oz., .35; 
4 Ib., $1.25; 14 lb., $2.30. 
68 Days 
(A) Longfellow, Special Strain 
72 Days 
A variety suited to outdoor or greenhouse 
GweUbehxe. UM agesy alal shay, [oy Thee aha, ike RP 3A 
in. thick. Extremely dark green over entire 
surface and holds its color after picking. 
White spined. Requires quite rich soil. Pkt., 
10; 0z., .385; %4 Ib., $1.25; 14 Ib., $2.30. 
Early Green Cluster 55 Days 
A fine pickling variety—also desirable for 
early slicing. Fruits borne in twos and threes. 
Short (5% in. by 2% in.), thick, pale green, 
cylindrical and full at both ends. Black spined. 
Pkt., .10; oz., .20; %4 Ib., .60; 1 Ib., $1.85. 
(A) Aitken’s Market Special 
Matures in 65 Days 
This new variety is considered one of the 
best for market gardeners and shippers, because 
of the large yield of fine, straight fruits, very 
dark green and stays green. The fruits are 
9 to 11 in. long and not too thick, very smooth, 
an excellent shipper. This variety when pick- 
ed small is used extensively for dills and gher- 
size for if any are allowed to reach complete 
maturity the plants cease to set on more 
fruit. 
Be careful not to put too much lime or 
ashes on the plants, as this will injure them. 
Keep them growing rapidly and insects have 
less chance to damage them. 
In picking to ship for slicing it is a good 
plan to divide the field into thirds and pick 
one third each day. 
Always cut off the cucumbers and handle 
very carefully. Do not ship any culls. 
Throw them away and ship only first class. 
specimens. They look so much better—the 
demand is kept up—the consumer is willing 
to pay a better price. There is less express 
and packing expense and your reputation 
for a first class pick is kept up, to the 
advantage of your bank account. 
When the market is high, many are 
tempted to ship seconds. Don’t do it; keep 
the market up with quality. 
Colorado 
This Cucumber has been found exception- 
ally attractive, being widely used by market 
growers. The fruits are very dark green, 
cylindrical, tapering at stem end, with small 
seed area. The length averages about 8% 
inches and thickness about 214 inches. A 
choice variety for appearance and slicing 
texture. Matures in-68 days. Pkt., .10; 
0z., .395; 14 Ib., $1.25; 146 lb., $2.30. 

AITKEN’S MARKET SPECIAL 
kins. If you have trouble in raising good cucumbers, try some this year; a trial will convince 
you. Pkt., .10; 0z., .35; 44 Ib., $1.25; 14 Ib., 
SS 
$2.30. 

(A) RECOMMENDED VARIETIES 
