The Mary Frances Garden Book; or, Adventures Among the Garden People

CHAPTER LVIII
Some Hints on Growing Vegetables

MARY FRANCES repeated to Eleanor some of the lessons which Billy had given her on growing vegetables.

She had a little book in which she had taken notes.

“Billy told me,” she said, “that when he was little, he used to wonder why things wouldn’t grow if they were just ‘stuck down’ in the ground. You see, he didn’t know that the making of the beds was the most important matter of all.”

“Why, I’ve heard people say that anything would grow if planted by certain people—that they ‘had luck,’” Eleanor stated.

“If you had watched those very people,” Mary Frances replied wisely, “you would probably have seen that they loosened up the soil before they ‘stuck’ the plant down.”

“I imagine that’s true,” agreed Eleanor.

“Well,” Mary Frances continued, opening her book, “as you know, in getting the outdoor beds ready, you—

(1) Dig deep to loosen the soil;
(2) Spread over it well-rotted manure;
(3) Dig and turn the soil over again;
(4) Rake the top soil fine and level.

It is a good plan to spread leaves and manure over the ground in the Fall and dig them in in the Spring to make the soil rich and crumbly, or friable.

Did you ever think how many different parts of plants are used for food?

We eat the roots of some vegetables; such as beets, carrots, radishes, turnips.

Of others we use the leaves; such as lettuce, celery, cabbage, spinach, parsley.

Of others, the seeds; as beans, peas, corn.

Of others, the fruit; as peppers, melons, tomatoes.

The Earliest Vegetables to Plant

The following vegetable seeds are not very delicate, and can stand a good deal of frost.

Plant as soon as the ground is warm, about the first of April.

Peas Plant seeds 2 inches apart, 2 inches deep, 1½ feet between rows.	—	The new early “Lactonia” peas are to be recommended, because it is not necessary to use brush for them to climb upon. Buy one pint. Sow peas every week for a month to have them ripen from time to time (“successively”).

Lettuce Plant seeds ½ inch deep, broadcast, or 3 inches apart, in rows 1 foot apart.	—	“All Heart” is very delicious. Remember that lettuce will be much more tender and crisp if grown very quickly in beds rich in manure. Over it, a shade frame should be used in mid-summer and hot weather. In transplanting to rows from the hotbed, put plants 6 inches apart. Cos, or Romaine, or Celery Lettuce is very easily grown. The heavy ribs of the leaves are crisp and good. It grows quite well in hot weather.

Onions Cover the onion with soil. Leave 2 inches between onions; 6 inches between rows.	—	Buy yellow onion sets—one pint. It takes two years to raise onions from seeds. When ready to pull, take every other one or so, leaving the smallest to grow larger.

Radishes ½ inch deep, about 2 inches apart. Rows 1 foot apart, or broadcast.	—	The best are the little red globe shape. Sow some in early Spring in hotbed. Sow every week to have “successive,” crops. They will be ready in about four weeks. Radishes like a sprinkling of lime in the soil.

Beets Seeds 1 inch deep, 2 inches apart, in rows 1 foot apart.	—	Buy five-cent package of Crosby’s “Egyptian.” Seeds may be sowed thick, for not all germinate. Thin the rows by pulling the weakest plants. The young leaves may be cooked as “greens.” Never cut the tops off of beets when cooking. Cut off only the leaves. Beets may be sowed again in June for a late crop.

The Second Early Vegetables to Plant
(About ten days after the first)


Carrots Sow ½ inch deep, 3 inches apart, in rows 1½ feet apart.	—	Buy one package “Sutton’s Red Intermediate.” Carrots do not like new rich soil. Radishes may be sowed between the rows; for they will be pulled before the carrots need much room. Sow carrots rather thick, and thin out weak plants.

Leeks Sow seeds 1 inch deep, 2 inches apart, in rows 1 foot apart.	—	Buy one package “Prizetaker Leeks.” Sow in March or April, and when they are about half a foot high, transplant to deep, rich soil, 6 inches apart, in rows 1 foot apart. Plant deep, to “blanch,” or whiten the tops. Leeks may be sowed in September and transplanted in the Spring.

Parsley Sow ½ inch deep, about 4 inches apart, in rows 1 foot apart.	—	Buy one package “Dwarf Perfection” or “Moss Curly.” Soak seed over night in water. Parsley may be broadcast if space is limited. Add an equal quantity of sand to the seeds to help sowing. Throw sand and seeds over the seed bed. Cover by using a toy rake. When 4 inches high, it may be transplanted to rows. “Winters over” in cold frame, and in some localities outdoors, if covered with leaves.

Thyme and Sweet Basil Broadcast.	—	Buy one package each. Broadcast and rake in the seeds. Sweet Basil grows tall. Thyme only about four inches high.

Peppers	—	Sow broadcast in March in flats (shadow boxes) in hotbed, or under glass. When 2 or 3 inches high, thin out. When ground is really warm, set out 15 inches apart in rows 2 feet apart. Children will not need more than half a dozen plants of large sweet peppers. Buy “Chinese Giant.” Little red peppers are particularly pretty in the garden, and are useful for flavoring soup—use only a half or a quarter of one, though. Buy “Small Chili” or “Red Cherry.”

Cucumbers	—	Sow about a dozen seeds in late March or early April in strawberry box filled with rich soil, and place under glass. Some warm day in May, make a hill about eight inches high, and after tearing off the bottom of the box, plant it in the hill. After a few days, thin out the weakest plants, leaving three or four standing. Two or three moth balls in the ground, when the leaves come through, will keep bugs away.

Corn	—	Sugar Corn takes up so much room in the garden that only a very few hills should be planted by a child. When the weather is very warm, make little hills 3 feet apart. Drop 6 corn kernels a little distance apart into the hole. Cover with about an inch of soil. Shallow cultivation helps. Buy one package “Stabler’s Early” for early corn; one package “Stowell’s Evergreen” for later crops.

Beans 2 inches deep, 6 inches apart, in rows 18 inches apart	—	Lima Beans. Buy “Bush Limas,” because it will not be necessary to set poles for them to climb upon. Wood ashes mixed with the soil helps them grow. They do not like damp, heavy soil. Do not plant before warm weather, because beans are tender. Plant in warm weather, edgewise, with the “eye” down. String Beans. Buy “Stringless Green Pod.” Plant every week after all danger of frost is past, 2 inches deep, 6 inches apart, in rows 18 inches or 2 feet apart.

Tomatoes Plants, 2 feet apart, in rows 3 feet apart Tomato Trellis or Support	—	It is best for the small gardener to buy the plants and set them out in rows when the weather is really warm. “Earliana” is the best early variety. “Ponderosa” is the best later variety. If you sow seeds, start them under glass in March or even earlier. When plants are about 3 inches high, transplant to strawberry boxes. Break bottom of box and transplant box into the open ground when it is really warm. Tomatoes need supports to rest or climb upon. The simplest support is a stake driven down near them, to which the stems are tied as they grow. Stakes driven at intervals with heavy cords running from one to the other make another good support; but the best is a slat frame. If grown from seeds, they will not be ready for about 18 weeks.

Potatoes	—	White Potatoes. It is best for children not to attempt to grow more than one plant of potatoes, but they may be interested to know that white potatoes are grown from the “eye,” cut in a large square-shaped piece of the potatoes. The potatoes form on the roots of the bush, and are dug and stored in the Fall. Sweet Potatoes grow on the roots of a very pretty vine which trails over the ground. To get the young plants, some sweet potatoes are grown in hotbeds, and the vines are transplanted in hot weather to open ground.

In transplanting, always press with your fingers the soil firmly down around the roots.

Fertilizers

As you know, in order to make good and rapid growth, plants need the right kind of food. Manure is the best fertilizer. In manure almost every kind of plant food is supplied, but there are chemical foods which stimulate growth and are easily applied. If it is impossible to obtain manure, use decayed vegetables and leaves, and Commercial Fertilizer, which is made up of the mineral or chemical food needed by plants. Do not use too much, for it is very heating and may burn the roots of young plants. Never let the roots come into direct contact with the powder—always sprinkle some earth over it after throwing a small quantity (about two tablespoonfuls) in a hole.

Bone meal or Ground Bone is another excellent food. If sprinkled on the ground and dug in around the roots of roses, it will give them a good food supply.

Nitrate of Soda is a very stimulating food for vegetables. Use 1 tablespoonful in 4 quarts of water in the sprinkler. Do not use until the plants are at least 3 inches high, and only once in two weeks. Sprinkle ground near roots—do not sprinkle leaves.

Cow Manure and Sheep Manure may be purchased in powdered form for use in a small garden, and in this form are most easily managed by little folks.

Powdered Sheep Manure dug in around the roots of roses once a month assures a wealth of bloom.

Insecticides

All plants will be attacked by insects.

One of the best insecticides for children to use, because it is not poisonous to human beings, is Slug Shot, a patent preparation, which will kill worms and many other biting insects. It is inexpensive and need be dusted but lightly on foliage which is bitten.

Tobacco tea made by throwing boiling water over tobacco stems, and letting it cool, is used for aphides (Plant lice).

For other insecticides, see Chapter XXIX.

In the following blank pages, write down your own experience in gardening; for example,

Name.	Dates.	Remarks.
Sweet Peas. (Improved Early Spencer.) Pink, lavender, white.	Plant in the Autumn, or early Spring.	Plant in deep drills, in rich earth. Give them a wire frame to climb upon. Never water at night, as the dampness causes them to mildew. Pick blossoms daily.