




) AQUILEGIA Me 
(Columbine) 


VERBENA 
Brightness 

' DELPHINIUM 
Wrexham 
Giants 
SCABIOSA 
Tall Double 
Mixed 

* GARDEN GUIDE POSTS 
STORING VEGETABLES 
Proper storage of root crops begins 
with planting, since they should just 
reach full maturity at the time frost 
is expected. (Maturity dates are 
given in each description.) Add 10 
days to this for a margin of safety 
and then count back this period 
from the day killing frost can be 
expected. For example, Crosby’s 
Egyptian beets mature in 60 days. 
If frost is expected Oct. 1st, then 
count back 70 days. This means that 
this variety should be planted for 
storage about July 20th. 
In the case of cabbage, winter 
squash, pumpkins, onions and 
leeks, these should be planted 20 
days ahead of the maturity dates 
given as they must be mature to 
keep well. 
Never store bruised, rotting or im- 
perfect vegetables. Quality decreases 
rather than improves with storage. 
METHODS OF STORAGE 
Beets, carrots, parsnips, salsify, 
turnips and rutabagas: Best stored 
in sand that is moist but not wet. 
Temperature as close to 33 degrees 
as possible, but must not go above 
40. Growth begins at 42 degrees, 
which will destroy sweetness. Don’t 
store all the parsnips indoors: leave 
some in the open garden for spring 
use. Freezing improves the flavor of 
these. 
Cabbage, endive, celery and Chi- 
nese cabbage: Dig with earth cling- 
ing to roots, set on floor of cellar or 
in cold frame with earth packed 
around roots. Keep roots moist but 
never sprinkle tops. Allow slight 
circulation of air. Temperature 33 
to 40 degrees. 
Onions and potatoes: Dry between 
33 and 40 degrees, Potatoes can 
stand a little more moisture than 
onions. After coming out of cold 
storage, potatoes will be better if 
kept in a room at 55 degrees for 10 
days before using to get rid of sweet 
taste that develops at low tempera- 
ture. 
Pumpkins, Squash, Sweet Pota- 
toes: Should be cured at 75 to 85 
degrees for ten days, then kept in 
dry room at 55 degrees. 


WHERE TO STORE 
In House Cellar: Partition off cor- 
ner of basement and control tem- 
perature by letting in cold air thru 
window. Cement floors will have to 
be sprinkled regularly or kept cov- 
ered with damp sand. Insulate ceil- 
ing if room is under living space. 
Screen and ratproof to keep out 
pests. 
Before vegetables are stored, wash 
floors and walls with household 
chlorine solution (Purex, Chlorox or 
Linco) to destroy spores that might 
rot vegetables. 

Outdoors in Barrel: A barrel half 
sunk into the ground or dug into the 
side of a hill can be used to keep 
root crops in sand, Cover any ex- 
posed part of the barrel with two 
feet of straw in severe weather to 
keep out frost. Don’t put all one 
kind of vegetable in the bottom, etc. 
Pack in mixed layers, so that an 
assortment can be taken out without 
emptying the whole barrel. 
Cold Frame: A _ well-built cold- 
frame can be used to store many 
vegetables. Cabbage, endive, celery 
and Chinese cabbage can be planted 
in soil and covered with straw. Root 
crops can be piled in one end mixed 
with sand and covered. Put on sash 
and cover with mats. If glass is not 
covered, sun will keep frame too 
warm on bright days. 
FOR BETTER FLOWERS FROM SEED 
When and how to transplant: 
When the plantlets have fully de- 
veloped their second pair of leaves, 
or “true” leaves as they are called, 
it is best to transplant them either 
to flats about three inches deep or 
to small pots. Remove them from 
the seed bed gently to damage the 
roots as little as possible and plant 
somewhat deeper than they origi- 
nally grew, so that the stems will be 
well supported. 
How to feed seedlings: When the 
seedlings have reached the stage of 
transplanting they require more 
plant food than they had in the seed 
flat mixture. Mix one teacupful of 
complete fertilizer with each bushel 
of soil mixture to make it fertile. 
One bushel of soil will take care of 
a great many plantlets. 
Temperature and light: The trans- 
planted seedlings should be kept at 
a temperature of 45 to 50 degrees. 
If they are kept near a window, turn 
the boxes each day, otherwise the 
plants will lean towards the light 
and grow lopsided or spindling. 
The right soil: Soil should be com- 
paratively light in texture and pref- 
erably not too rich in plant food. 
One-third garden loam, one-third 
peat moss and one-third sharp sand 
will grow healthy seedlings. 
When re-potting is necessary: As 
the little plants grow they may need 
to be shifted to larger pots to keep 
them in good growing condition up 
to the time the weather permits 
their being planted outdoors. This 
transplanting should be done when 
the roots have formed a mat around 
the inside of the pot. Usually it is 
best to change to a pot only one or 
two sizes larger than that in which 
the plant has been growing. 
33 
