Celery for profit

Chapter I.— Glittering Generalities. Page

CHAPTER IL— THE HOME GARDEN CROP.

Good Results With Little Labor. — Value of the Crop. — The Early Home Supply. — Raising the Plants. — Setting Out. — Blanching by Boards. — The Late Home Supply. — Raising the Plants. — Planting.— Blanching, 12

CHAPTER HL— WHERE THE PROFIT LIES.

Celery for the Summer Market. — Celery Growing in Kalamazoo. — Chances Elsewhere. — Growing the Plants. — Hotbeds and Greenhouses. — Flats in Cucumber Forcing House. — The Water-bench. — Preparing the Ground. — Setting the Plants. — Culture. — Handling. -Celery Hoe, — Celery Hillers. — Methods of Blanching, 26

CHAPTER IV.— A CROP TO FILL IN.

Celery for the Fall and Winter Market, — Growing the Plants. — Packing Plants for Shipping. — Setting the Plants. — U. S. Weather Signals. — Culture. — Handling. — Blanching, ... 43

CHAPTER v.— THE NEW CELERY CULTURE.

A New Way Promising Large Profits. — Indispensable Requisites. — The New Method in the Home Garden.— In the Market Garden. — A Celery Shed, , 5^ vi TABLE OF CONTENTS.

CHAPTER VI.— THE IRRIGATION PROBLEM.

PAGE

Making Success a Certainty. — An Irrigated Field. — Irrigation by Box Ditch. — Tile Lines as Water Distributors.— Watering by Hose, 57

CHAPTER VII.— THE ENEMIES OF THE CROP.

Insects and Diseases, and How to Fight Them. — The Parsley Worm. — The Cabbage Plusia. — Slugs. — Celery Blights. — Celery Rust. — Bacteria 63

CHAPTER VIII.— THE WINTERING PROBLEM.

How TO Keep and Blanch the Crop for Winter Use. — Requisites of Success. — Storing in Cellar. — In Box. — In Hotbed- Frame. — Storage in Trenches. — In Root-Houses or Pits, ... 68

CHAPTER IX.— MARKETING METHODS.

How to Turn the Crop Into Cash.— General Advice.— Preparing for Market. — Packages. — Crate for Shipping Summer Celery, 74

CHAPTER X.— PROFIT AND LOSS ACCOUNT.

The Outcome in Dollars and Cents.— Estimates of Profit.— Loss Not Impossible. — Profits of the Summer Crop. — Profits of the Late Crop. — Final Word of Warning, 80

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

I." Celery Plants Grown 2 Inches Apart, I5

2. Celery Plants Grown }4 an Inch Apart, i6

3. Plant Properly Trimmed, ^7

4. Wooden Dibbers, ^^

5. Blanching by Boards (ready to be set up), 20

6. << Boards (in position, end view), 20

7. « Boards (in position, side view), 21

8. " Boards (thrown back), 21

9. Shading by Boards, 24

10. Fire Hotbed, Cross Section, 28

H. Fire Hotbed, Length Section, 29

12. Sash-roofed Greenhouse, 3°

13. Rows of Flats in Cucumber Forcing House, 3^

14. Cross Section of Rows, 35

15. Celery After Handling, . 3^

16. Celery Tied with Cotton Yarn • • 37

17. Celery Hoe, 37

18. Celery Hiller (Planet, Jr. Double), 39

19. Celery After Earthing Up, 4°

20. Machine for Hilling Celery, 4°

21. Bleaching by Various Methods, 4i

22. Celery Plants in Basket for Shipping, 4^

23. U. S. Weather Flags, 4^

24. The New Celery Culture in the Home Garden, 52

25. Newly-set Plants Shaded with Fine Hay, 53

26. Glimpse at Corner of Patch, New Celery Culture, 54

27. A Celery Shed, 55

28. Irrigated Field, 57

29. Irrigation by Box Ditch 5^

30. Tile Lines as Water Distributors, 59

vii viii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

Fig. page

31. Tile Lines near Surface, 60

32. Parsley Worm and Cabbage Plusia, 64

12^. Diseased Leaves, 66

34. Celery Stored in Box, , , 69

35. Celery Stored in Hotbed Frame, 69

36. Celery Stored in Narrow Trench, 7°

37. Celery Stored in Wide Trench, 7^

38. Ways of Trimming the Roots, 75

39. Bunch of Celery, 7^

40. Open Crate for Shipping Celery, 77

41. New Crate for Marketing Celery, 78

Celery for Profit.

GLITTERING GENERALITIES.

What a remarkable change — that which the last decade has witnessed in our celery industry, both in regard to production and consumption ! Only ten years ago celery was a rarity and a luxury. The majority of rural people hardly knew it by name, and, perhaps, had never seen or tasted a stalk. The professional market gardener grew it in a limited and laborious way, mostly for city consumers who could afford to pay a good price for the article, and then the supply lasted only during a short period of each year.

How different now ! You find a little patch of celery in every complete home garden. In various parts of the country it is grown by tens, by hundreds, even by thousands of acres. The tables of every hotel, down to the fourth and fifth rank, of every boarding-house, no matter how modest, are provided with celery almost the whole year round. People have learned to like the taste of the vegetable, and they will have it. They can afford to have it, too, even if they must buy it, because the supply now is large and prices have come down to moderate figures.

Similar changes have, within the memory of persons not yet of middle age, taken place in the production and consumption of strawberries, grapes, tomatoes, and other fruits and vegetables. All these changes are hopeful and satisfactory signs of the times. The American people are getting to be more and more weaned from the flesh-pots of old Yankeedom, and into the habit of substituting therefor the fruits of the promised land. This means a steady move in the right direction — away from an excessive, almost exclusive meat diet, and toward civilization and refinement.

Notwithstanding all the abundance of celery in our markets, I claim that we do not yet grow enough to reach fully around. Notwithstanding the moderate and often low prices at which celery can now be purchased in almost every town, I claim that celery growing can be made more profitable than any other branch of gardening.

In explanation of the one claim, I assert that too many rural people are yet without a full home supply, and in that of the other, that the introduction of the White Plume celery, and of improved methods of culture, are rendering celery growing so simple and cheap, that the prices now obtainable, low as they are, will repay the cost of production many times over. In fact, it has become now as easy to grow celery as to grow carrots or potatoes.

The introduction of the White Plume marks the beginning of a new era in celery culture, just as that of the Prizetaker onion marks that of a new era in onion growing. In all its consequences it has brought us a complete revolution in methods.

The home grower now need fear no great difficulty, no unusual or excessive labor, and hardly a failure. The newer kinds and methods enable the market grower to produce a number of times the quantity per acre that was grown by the old practices, and in some cases even two successive celery crops on the same piece of ground.

The old methods now cease to be profitable. They are

GLITTERING GENERALITIES. 11

too cumbersome, too troublesome, too laborious, too expensive. The grower must, of necessity, adopt the newer improved ways of culture or be left behind in the race. The times of digging deep trenches for celery are past. Even the more recent but un-American system practiced by the Kalamazoo people will not prevail much longer.

If you have a little patch of ground, no matter how small, that is used for gardening purposes, you are (or should be) a grower of celery. If you grow celery, even to the smallest extent, you will be interested in the following pages, and it will pay you well to study the information found in them. I have tried to give plain and complete directions, without side issues or useless flourishes. May they help the reader on the way to full success in the production of one of the choicest, most palatable, and most wholesome vegetables that were ever brought under cultivation.

T. Greiner.

II. The Home Garden Crop

GOOD RESULTS WITH LITTLE LABOR.

VALUE OF THE CROP. — THE EARLY HOME SUPPLY. — RAISING THE PLANTS — SETTING OUT. — BLANCHING BY BOARDS. — THE LATE HOME SUPPLY.— RAISING THE PLANTS. — PLANTING.— BLANCHING.

My friends should not accuse me of losing sight of my text. I promised to write on '' celery for profit." Do not imagine that this does not include the home garden crop. If the reader has never been bountifully provided with good celery, or has never observed *^ confirmed celery eaters" "at work," I wish he could see the quantities of this vegetable that are brought upon my table, and notice the keen enjoyment with which all members of my family take hold of the crisp stalks. I would not miss the privilege of having a full home supply of this choice delicacy for many dollars. Many persons, probably a large majority, cannot appreciate the full force of this statement, simply because they have never or seldom had a chance to find out what a fine and enjoyable thing celery, when in perfection, really is. They may have had a taste of the stale stuff ordinarily found in the retail markets — wilted, tough, stringy, strong in flavor — and, of course, they do not like it. The solid, brittle stalks and hearts of true chestnut flavor and crispness are an altogether different thing.

Nine out of every ten of the many persons who claim that they "do not like celery " I would willingly engage to cure forever of this dislike, simply by letting them have a few tastes of the crisp, nutty centre-stalks of well-grown, freshly-gathered celery.

Thus far I have spoken only of the enjoyment and comforts found in a good home supply of good celery. Much might also be said about the sanitary, if not medical, effects of a celery diet. This vegetable is generally recognized as a nerve tonic and nerve stimulant. If its free use makes you stronger, healthier, it may save you doctors' visits and outlays for medicines. If it saves expense, it has a money value, and is profitable. And then, health is worth more than money.

But besides all this there is some real, shiny, jingling cash in the home garden crop of celery. The man, or woman, or boy, who has succeeded in growing some nice stalks, always has neighbors who, when they hear of it or see it — may this be early in the season or late — will want some. It has been so in my experience, and I never knew it to be otherwise anywhere. They will want it, and be willing to pay even a better price for it than the grower could secure through the regular channels of city trade. It is true the amounts may be small — a dime or a quarter now and then — but even small amounts come handy and help to bear the expenses of running a home garden. Every little helps, you know. Really, why not make the home garden self-supporting by selling some of the surplus vegetables that even a quarter-acre vegetable patch produces ? If you raise good garden stuff of any kind, I am sure there will be somebody in your vicinity willing and anxious to get some of it at a reasonable price.

The Early Home Supply.

The first celery from my home garden usually comes upon my table about or shortly after the middle of July. Any home grower, however unskilled, can have it at that time just as well as myself, for, as I stated before, early celery, after the plants are grown, is as easily produced as carrots, and much easier than many other of our leading vegetables.

Sometimes I buy the plants needed for the early crop. White Plume is the variety you want for this purpose. Commercial growers will furnish them to you during May, the proper time for setting them out, at ^^4.00 per 1000. A couple of hundred plants will give an abundant supply to even a large family, and, perhaps, some to spare for the neighbors.

Usually it is safer and cheaper to grow the plants than to buy them ; and this is the course I prefer, and always try to take. Invest five or ten cents in a packet of White Plume celery seed. Along in the latter part of February fill a flat box, or a large flower-pot, with nice, clean, mellow loam, well pressed down and firmed. Apply water enough to make the soil quite moist; then sow the seed, either broadcast or in narrow rows, rather thickly, and sift just a little sand or fine soil over it, firming well afterward. Cover the box or pot with a single thickness of light paper or cloth to keep the soil dark and moist, and set it into the kitchen or sitting-room window, or in any other place having a comfortable but. moderate temperature. A hotbed, with moderate bottom heat, would be a still better place for it, but not every home gardener can have it thus early in the season.

About ten days after sowing, the seeds will begin to sprout. Remove the paper or cloth cover and gradually get the young plants accustomed to the light and air. Always water promptly, never letting the soil become thoroughly dry, yet at the same time carefully avoiding the opposite extreme.

Next comes the performance which professional gardeners call '' pricking out." This means the first transplanting of the young seedlings into other boxes or '' flats," for the purpose of giving them more and uniform space, and of encouraging root growth. From two to four small boxes — each say sixteen and one- half inches long, nine inches wide, and four inches deep — will hold all the plants necessary for any average family's home supply of celery. In place of the flats the plants may be set out directly in a hot-bed, or even a cold frame.

The tiny seedlings transplant easily. Set them one-half or three-quarters of an inch apart, with rows about three inches apart, which will give from fifty to seventy-five m z^

Plants in Flats, Two Inches Apart in Row.

plants to the flat or to an equivalent space in the frame. Water well, and keep them lightly shaded for a day or two, should the weather be very bright. This is about all the care they will need until their final transfer to the open ground, unless they should grow very rank, when it will be necessary, or at least advisable, to shear or clip off a large part of the tops. Spindling plants are not wanted.

Neither should we go to the opposite extreme. When plants are given much space, their roots will develop, as

CELER V FOR PROFIT.

shown in Fig. i. We thus obtain fine-looking, short, stocky plants, and they will be all right, when we take them up with the soil adhering to their roots, and set them out with some care.

In Fig. 2 we see plants crowded together to one-half inch apart in the row, as I have advised you to set them in the flats or frames. In this case the roots grow long and fleshy, like parsley roots. These plants can be taken up a

Fig. 2.

4 ^ ^c-miiwi'^Mh^^

<f>u

Plants in Fl\ts, One half Inch Apart in Row.

with less care, and set out in the open ground more rapidly and more conveniently than the others. The fleshy roots contain reserve forces upon which the plant can draw during the time when it tries to get a new hold in the soil. They also reach down further into the stratum of perpetual moisture than the finer, sprawling roots of the plants in Fig. I. In short, the advantages seem to be mostly on the side of the plants grown more closely.

THE HOME GARDEN CROP.

Having once secured good plants — such as shown in Fig. 2 — with which to begin outdoor operations, the battle is about half won. Any spot, any vacant row in the wellmanured garden may be used for our purpose. Where the garden was plowed ''in lands" or beds, or when furrows were left purposely for surface drainage, these furrows may be utilized, or a furrow or two may be opened on a vacant

Fig. 3.

^Pf'^.ffi

A Plant Properly Trimmed.

Strip, or between crops of quick growth that we know will be off by July, such as early peas, radishes, early lettuce, bunching onions, etc. Fill these furrows with fine, rich old compost (if containing a portion of poultry manure, all the better) and then mix this compost and the soil well together, either by means of the plow, cultivator, or even

CELER V EOR PROFIT.

with the spade. Firm the soil well, and smooth the surface with hoe and rake, and you are ready for setting the plants, which should always be done as soon as possible after the ground is prepared and while still moist.

Stretch a garden line a couple of inches to one side of where the row of plants is to stand, or make a mark for the row in the most convenient way. Now get the plants ready. Pull them up out of the flats or frame \ put them in bunches of convenient size, and cut off the ends of both root and top, as illustrated in Fig. 3. Plants thus trimmed

Fig.

Wooden Dibbers.

handle well, and usually stand the ordeal of transplanting better than plants with all the tops, and the long, slim root-ends left on.

In nice, mellow loam, sandy and especially mucky soils, setting out celery plants is easy work, and the index finger may be used for making the openings ; but I always prefer to use a small dibber, similar to those shown in Fig. 4. You can easily whittle one out of a piece of dry limb, preferably of hickory or apple tree. This will answer the purpose as well as any dibber you could buy. Set the plants about five inches apart in a straight line, pressing the soil firmly about the root of each plant. If you want to know whether the w^ork was done right, take a good hold of one of the leaves and pull. If the plant comes out of the ground, it was not set firmly enough ; if the leaf breaks without loosening the plant, all is right.

Remember, however, that you cannot and must not set out plants when the ground is sticky. The soil is in best condition for the operation when only just dry enough to easily crumble to pieces between the fingers. Then we could altogether dispense with watering the plants after setting, especially during cool and cloudy weather. If the soil is dry, however, the air warm, and the sky clear, the application of half a gill or so of water to each plant, shortly after setting them out, is only a reasonable precaution and demand. It is easily and quickly done, requiring only a very few bucketfuls of water for the few hundred plants set out by the home gardener, and I strongly advise that it be done in all cases, except in cloudy weather or when rain is expected. Shading and similar precautions, serviceable in setting plants for the later crops, during July or August, are hardly ever needed in setting those for the early crop during May, as the soil then is usually moist and moderately cool, and evaporation not excessive.

Not much in the way of after-cultivation is required — a little hoeing, as other crops receive it, is about all. Early in July the plants will be large enough for bleaching. I never '■ ' bank " or ' ' earth up ' ' the early crop, but prefer to bleach it in the simplest manner by means of a few old boards, 8 to 12 inches wide, such as can be found lying about on almost any place. There is no need of ''handling " or tying, either. Just take two boards, and lay one on each side of the row (see Fig. 5) ; then take hold of

CELERY FOR PROFIT.

the outer edges, and turn them up together and against the row (see Fig. 6). That is all. In a week or two you may begin to use the celery. The row, when boards are on.

Fig. 5.

Boards Ready for Setting up Against the Row.

then looks as represented in Fig. 7, and, with boards thrown back, as represented in Fig. 8. As fast as the plants are taken up, and boards become available for use elsewhere, they are moved along to a row, or part of row, not yet

Fig. 6.

Boards in Position for Bleaching.

blanched. Thus the same boards may be used a number of times in succession, and the supply of freshly-bleached celery kept up until the late celery is ready for the table.

THE HOME GARDEN CROP.

If you have only narrow boards, say five or six inches wide, they will answer the purpose, if you set them up as directed, and, after a few days, draw five or six inches of

Fig. 7.

Row OF Celery— Boards on.

Fig. 8.

Row OF Celery — Boards Thrown Back.

soil to the row from each side, replacing the boards on top of this.

The Late Home Supply.

The late home crop should be ready in October and last until spring. Again, the first thing should be to make provisions for the plants. It is better, safer, cheaper to raise them than to buy them. Really first-class plants cannot often be bought, and when you do buy them, you are not sure whether you have a good kind or not. Sometimes in May one can get, at little cost, small seedling plants (the thinnings) from a celery grower in the vicinity, and these may be set out in well-prepared soil, one-half or threefourths of an inch apart in the row, kept well cultivated and free from weeds until wanted for setting out to make the crop.

My advice, however, is to buy a ten-cent packet or an ounce of seed, selecting Giant Pascal as first choice, and New Rose or some other good pink variety as second. These two are the very cream of the celeries, and to my taste about at the head of the list in quality.

There is no difficulty about raising the plants for any one who knows how to prepare a garden spot for early radishes, early beets, lettuce, onions, etc. They all require a nice smooth bed of rich, mellow ground. The rows for these vegetables are usually about twelve inches apart. This is all right. Use one of the rows among the onions or radishes, sowing seed, at the very earliest moment after the ground' can be prepared (March or April), thinly in a shallow mark, as yoii would sow carrot seed ; cover lightly if at all, and firm well, either with a garden roller, if you have one, or with the feet.

The seed seldom fails to germinate promptly when thus treated. As soon as the plants can be seen, stir the ground about them with a wheel-hoe or common hoe, and pull up all weeds as fast as they appear in the row. The plants should be thinned at the very start, and no more than twenty-five to fifty be allowed to remain to the foot of row. Water in very dry weather, but do this thoroughly when you do it at all. Give one good soaking that will last, rather than a mere sprinkling repeated every day, which is of no earthly use.

Should the plants grow very rank, and especially if crowded, make it your business, some time in June, to shear or clip off about one-half of the tops. The final planting-out should be done during July, as early as convenient, where the seasons are short, and up to August, or even later, in the Middle States. Prepare the plants, and set them out in rows exactly as directed for the early celery. If you have well-grown plants to spare, some neighbor will gladly take one hundred plants or so for forty or fifty cents. Now, we meet one difficulty not encountered in the other case, namely, a hot and dry season. The soil may be parched and dust-dry, and rains may fail us for weeks. Under such circumstances it is advisable to apply water freely to the row or rows a few hours before the plants are to be set, and again after they are set, and, if possible, to shade the plants slightly for the first few days after their transfer. A light sprinkling of fine hay over the plants will provide all the shading required and usually prove of material benefit. Another way of providing shade may be seen in Fig. 9. Drive little stakes slantingly on the south or southeast side of the row, a few inches from the line of plants, and lean boards up against them. After the plants have become well established, these boards can then be removed. Rapid growth is now to be encouraged in all possible ways, especially by stirring the soil frequently and keeping the weeds down. Applications of water, liquid manure, or soapsuds will be of especial service in this direction. A part of this late crop will probably be wanted for the table fresh from the patch, although the early crop may well be made to hold out up to the first or middle of October. The bleaching process for this part should be begun early in September, and may be carried on in somewhat the same fashion as directed for early celery, except that the boards ought to be not less than ten to twelve inches wide. Earthing up, as will be described in next chapter, may give still better results, and is especially desirable when the plants are intended to be left in open ground for use in November and December.

The other part, intended for winter storage, requires no bleaching, but it should be handled or boarded up a few

Fig.

Shading the Plants.

weeks before it is to be taken up, in order to make the plants grow upright and compact. Late in October or early in November — at any rate before the temperature has at any time gone much below the freezing point, and surely not below twenty-three or twenty-four degrees Fahrenheit — lift the plants with a spade, leaving some soil adhering to the roots, and set them rather closely together upon the floor of a moist cellar, or upon a layer of moist soil put into a large box. The bleaching process will then be finished during winter, and the plants may be used as wanted. Try to keep the roots moist and the tops dry ; in this, with a cool temperature and a trifle of ventilation, we have all the ^' secrets ' ' of keeping celery.

During the past season I have come across an entirely new way of growing celery, not only for commercial purposes, but also in the home garden. You will find in this a most valuable and true short-cut. Look it up in the chapter on " The New Celery Culture." Let no reader of this book fail to give this simple method a trial. There, truly, he will find ''good results with little labor."

III. Where The Profit Lies

CELERY FOR THE SUMMER MARKET.

CELERY GROWING IN KALAMAZOO. — CHANCES ELSEWHERE. — GROWING THE PLANTS. — HOTBEDS AND GREENHOUSES. — FLATS IN CUCUMBER FORCING HOUSE. — THE WATER BENCH. — PREPARING THE GROUND. — SETTING THE PLANTS. — CULTURE. — HANDLING. — CELERY HOE. — CELERY KILLERS.— METHODS OF BLANCHING.

Don't tell me that the competition of the Hollanders around Kalamazoo, Mich., is so ruinous that the business of growing early celery elsewhere holds out no further promise of financial success. True, this competition is formidable. The methods adopted by these people and their success — if such it is — are based on a system of drudgery to which American vegetable growers will not readily submit, namely, on the employment of the whole family — father, mother, grandparents, and children of all ages and sizes — keeping all of them at work every minute of long working days. Even then their profits are not commensurate to their efforts, and if they were forced to employ able-bodied working men at full prices for their various operations, and then sell their crops to the "shippers" as they do now, it is doubtful whether the industry would long survive.

The only real advantage which the Kalamazoo Hollanders seem to have over growers elsewhere possessing suitable celery soil is the reputation of the Kalamazoo product ; but this is offset by serious disadvantages, especially (i) the high tax they are compelled to pay to middlemen and express companies, in consequence of a wholesale production which demands the whole United States for a market, and calls for long-distance shipments, and (2) the great local demand for manure which results in prices far more favorable to the seller than to the buyer and user.

Indeed, there are thousands of places in the United States where a much better combination of favorable conditions for the celery grower can be found than in Kalamazoo, and where the celery industry can be established on a safe and American basis. But let us make no mistake. We must not imagine that it will be safe to engage largely in growing " celery for profit," unless the conditions of soil and market are unusually favorable.

It is true that celery will thrive on almost any kind of soil if only rich enough. Yet to make its culture profitable, we must be enabled to systematize the work, and reduce the labor account to a minimum by the substitution of horse-power and improved implements for hand labor, and, if possible, to surround the crop with additional safeguards against failure by artificial irrigation. In the first place, we must have soil that is easily worked, such as sandy muck or meadow land, clean, deep, rich, mellow, and well worked. There should also be a never-failing supply of water available for irrigation. Next we need plenty of good manure at moderate prices, and finally a good near market.