The home garden; a book on vegetable and small-fruit growing, for the use of the amateur gardener

Front matter

THE

HOME GARDEN

EBEN E. M.Xf ORB

Contents

PAGE

Foreword 9

I. Location and Soil 21

I. Location And Soil

Much more depends on the favorable location of the garden than one who has not had experience would suppose. The general impression among amateurs seems to be that soil is the all-important item. If the ground is rich, there is nothing further to be desired. This is all a mistake. Of course it is quite necessary that the soil should be rich, but the writer knows of many gardens exceptionally good in this respect which are not good growers of vegetables, simply because they slope away from the sun.

The ideal garden slopes to the south, and secures all possible benefit from the sun's rays in early spring, when vegetables are getting their start. But, unfortunately, ideal gardensites are the exception and not the rule. Perhaps nine out of ten are flat, or nearly so. We must take things as we find them in choosing our location, but, as far as possible, choose a site which will receive the greatest amount of benefit from the sun. Something can be gained in a level garden by planting in rows running north and south. This will allow the sun to shine between them, w^hile rows running east and west would cast their shadows over each other.

The first benefit derived from simshine is the extraction of tmdue moisture from the soil in early spring. The soil that gets rid soonest of the moisture from melting snows and early rains is the one that can be put in shape at the earliest possible date, because it can be made mellow and friable several days sooner than that which must wait for excessive moisture to drain off. When drainage and simshine act together, this part of the work is hastened greatly, and is done in the most satisfactory manner. Therefore, press the stm into service as much as you possibly can.

The second benefit which the soil derives from the sun is the warmth which it absorbs during the day. It drinks this in very much as

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Location and Soil a dry soil drinks in water, and the good work goes on during the night, Kghtening, disintegrating, and vivifying. Sunshine is a tonic to any garden, and we cannot have too much of it.

The third benefit derived is in its quickening effect. A moderately rich soil, fully exposed to sunshine, will grow earlier vegetables than a very rich soil not fully supplied with sunshine. One of the secrets of successful vegetable growing is in bringing the plants ahead as rapidly as possible after they get a start. Vegetables that grow slowly are always inferior in quality. They lack tenderness and flavor. In order to secure these qualities, one must have a quick, rich soil, and stmshine enough to give it something of the nature of the hot-bed.

The best soil, all things considered, for the successful production of vegetables, is one that is rather light and sandy — perhaps what the farmer would call a sandy loam. It falls apart readily when turned up by the plow, and speedily becomes mellow under the application of the hoe or cultivator. A heavier soil may have more strength in it> but it is not as desirable for vegetable-growing, because it cannot be worked as early in the season, and cannot so easily be put into satisfactory condition as the lighter and more friable soil. What this soil lacks in strength can readily be supplied by the use of good fertilizers. I have seen gardens made out of almost pure sand, heavily manured, which grew excellent crops. Here the sand was simply an agent by which the nutritive qualities of the manure were rendered available. But the vegetables grown in it lacked the fine flavor of those grown in a better soil. Some sand in a garden is a most excellent thing, but good loam is the soil from which best results can be expected.

As has been said regarding the location of the garden, we must take things as they are, and do what we can to make the most of them. Heavy soil can be lightened wonderfully by adding coarse, sharp sand as a top dressing, and plowing it under. This can be done when the ground is manured, and both can be worked into the original soil at the same time. The benefit of the sand may not be very apparent the first season, as it will not be as thoroughly incorporated with the native soil then as it will be after repeated workings, but there will be a decided improvement from the start. If

Location and Soil sand is added several seasons in succession, a soil of heavy clay may be made over into what might almost be considered loam. Old mortar, leaves, litter from the barn-yard,— almost any kind of refuse that will decay, or assist in the process of disintegration, — can be made use of for lightening purposes.

If the spot chosen for the garden is not naturally well drained, it ought to be made so artificially. This is a matter of great importance. A soil that cannot be made to part readily with excess moisture is not one in which vegetables can be grown well. If the ground slopes in any direction, water will run away from force of gravity, but if it is nearly level water will settle into it and remain there until the soil becomes sour — ^that is if it is a soil that is naturally heavy and therefore retentive of moisture. A garden in such a location ought to be underdrained. Tiling it will accomplish the purpose very satisfactorily. If this cannot be done for any reason, surface-draining can be resorted to, by making ditches at each side with laterals to conduct the water to them from the centre of the garden. This is probably the system most amateur gardoners will employ, as it is the simplest and easiest method and one that does not require skilled labor.

The writer has seen some very good gardens on flat, low lands where nothing could have been grown if a system of ditches had not been constructed to take the water out of the soil several inches below its surface. A broad, deep ditch was run entirely around the garden. Cross-ditches connected with this. These were shallow at the centre, deepening gradually as they neared the main ditch. In this way a fall was secured that would cause the water to run off rapidly from the centre of the garden. After a heavy rain the main ditch would be half full of water for several hours perhaps, but almost always the level of the water was below the roots of the plants in the garden, consequently they were not affected by it. This may have been growing vegetables under difficulties, but it proved the truth of the old saying that where there 's a will there 's a way, and no doubt the products of such gardens were appreciated much more than they would have been if they had been grown under more favorable conditions. I think we always

Location and Soil prize most that which is gained by a good deal of effort.

Therefore let me say to any man who owns or can secure control of a piece of ground, make a garden on it, and do your very best to make it bring forth liberally. You will be amply repaid for your labor in more ways than one.

II

Gardens in which the soil is heavy can be benefited by fall plowing. If the grotind is turned up and left in ridges as it comes from the plow, in October or November, the action of frost on it during the winter will have a decidedly disintegrating effect, and it will be foimd much more tractable in spring than it would be if freshly plowed. Of course it will need a spring plowing to reduce it to the proper condition for working. This second plowing will put it in very fair shape for immediate use, while a few days' exposure to the combined effects of sun, air, and possibly warm showers, will make it mellower than after tw^o weeks of exposure with only one plowing. This being the case, I would always advise fall plowing for gardens of heavy soil. Another benefit is derived from fall plowing. The larvae of many worms will be destroyed by frost in the upturned furrows. For this reason, if no other, fall plowing is advisable. But I would not advise fall plowing for the garden whose soil is light and porous. Not that plowing in fall would injure it, but no particular benefit would accrue, and it is just so much unnecessary work.

Do not make the mistake of applying manure in fall, tmless you have so much of it that you can afford to waste the greater portion of the fall application. Even if plowed under, much of its beneficial effect will be lost during the late fall rains, which will leach it away to such an extent that next season's crops will get but little good from it, and, later, by the evaporation which takes place during winter under the action of frost, unless the ground is well covered with snow. The idea of evaporation in winter may seem absurd to those who have given the matter but little thought and have not made it one of personal study and investigation. But it is a fact, nevertheless, that a large share of the nutritive properties of manure applied in fall will be dissipated and lost by freezing and thawing. Therefore, unless, as has already been said, you have more manure than you can use to advantage, hold the supply in reserve for spring application.

Before plowing, I would advise running a harrow over the ground to collect the stalks and debris of last season's crops, of which there will doubtless be a goodly quantity unless you have been gardener long enough to have established the habit of thoroughly cleaning up the garden in the fall — a habit to be heartily encouraged for more reasons than one. If the refuse is raked up and disposed of in the fall, by burning, or by adding it to the compost heap, many eggs of insects which prey upon vegetables will be destroyed, and the spores of fungoid diseases will be rendered comparatively inert. This is a sufficient reason for a general fall cleaning up in the garden, for it is the means of saving a great deal of hard work which would have to be done next season, if eggs and larvae were left to develop. The neat appearance of a garden in which no refuse is left to show itself above the ordinary covering of snow is another argument in favor of fall cleaning.

It may seem to the amateur that the advice to run a harrow over the ground before plowing, if the garden was left uncared for in the fall, is more the result of whim than anything else, but it is not. Old stalks and roots of last year's vegetables will not be wholly plowed under, in nine cases out of ten, and these will be continually cropping up to clog the teeth of the garden cultivator, and interfere with good work. The cleaner the soil the better the quality of the work you can do in it. Bear this in mind, and never leave any refuse to be worked into it.

When you are ready for plowing, spread your manure. Spread it evenly, and use it liberally. The ideal manure for the vegetable garden is that made up largely of cow-droppings which have lain long enough to be well decomposed. If black and friable, it is in the best possible condition. I know of no accurate m.ethod of determining the precise quantity to use. Much depends on the quality of the soil, and more, perhaps, on the strength of the manure you use. That which has been kept under shelter will be rich in nutriment, while that which has been left exposed after leaving the bam will have parted with a large percentage of its goodness. There is not much danger of making the garden too rich. The principal danger from excessive use of bamyard-manure is in making the soil so loose that it dries out more readily than it otherwise would — more rapidly than is consistent with healthy vegetable growth.

Of course the writer is well aware that cow-manure is not always obtainable. Horse-manure is more plentiful, except in the country. While it is a great deal better than nothing, it is far from being an excellent manure for vegetables. I would much prefer to use the fertiHzers kept on sale at agricultural stores. These produce excellent results if one is careful to fit the fertilizer to the soil. By that I mean using just the kind adapted to the soil of your garden. Soils vary greatly even in the same neighborhood, and the fertilizer that answers admirably in one locality may not be what is needed in another. The only way to decide this matter is to get the advice of some one who understands the nature of the soil in your garden, and knows what kind of fertilizer will work best in it. He will be able to tell you what quantity to use, and how to apply it in such a manner as to secure the best results. The dealer in your neighborhood ought to be able to tell you these things. These commercial fertilizers have one advantage over the best of cow-mxanure, and that is, they never contain seeds of any weeds.

Plow your garden early in the season, but not until the ground is in what is called good working condition. It is possible to plow it as soon as the frost is out of the ground, but it is not good policy to do so. Wait until most of the water from snow and rain has had a chance to drain away. If you turn up a furrow while the ground is wet and sticky, it will drop from the plow in chunks, and probably remain in that condition for a considerable length of time. But if you wait until surplus moisture is out of the ground, the soil will be pretty likely to cram.ble apart readily especially after it has been exposed to sun and rain for a short time. You gain nothing by too early plowing, as most amateurs seem to think. In fact, you lose tim.e by it, for the later plowing of a well-drained soil will put the garden in good working condition a few days sooner that it will be if plowed while wet and cold. Here is one of the instances where haste makes waste — of time.

Always plow your garden in such a manner as to get the longest possible furrow. The fewer turns you have to make, the better will the work be done. The amateur may not understand the logic of this assertion until he 3 33 begins gardening, but he will speedily do so when he observes the effect of long and short furrows. Deep or shallow plowing must be determined largely by the nature of the soil. If the surface is of loam, with a sub-soil of clay, do not go deep enough to bring up much of the latter. But if the loam is of considerable depth, deep plowing is advisable, because it brings fresh, strong soil to the surface.

After plowing, use the harrow to pulverize and level the soil. It is a good plan to run this implement both lengthwise and crosswise of the garden, for by so doing the soil is more evenly settled than it can be by going over it in one direction only. The harrow should have long, slender teeth which will go down into the soil well and tear apart everything in the shape of sod or masses of fine roots. Simply skimming the soil is not of much benefit, except for the purpose of levelling.

The foregoing advice on the preparation of the garden is based on the supposition that your plat of ground is large enough to warrant the use of the plow. But perhaps the majority of gardens are so small that a plow could not be used to advantage in them. These will have to be prepared by spading. The labor of getting them ready for the reception of seed will be more than is demanded in the garden where the plow can be made use of, but it will not be found so excessive as most amateurs may imagine. If you provide yourself with a thin-bladed spade and keep it sharp, the work can be done rapidly, and it will not be found as exhaustive as you most likely thought would be the case before you settled down to business. One will be surprised to see how much ground can be spaded up in an hour. A little time devoted to this work each day for a week or so will put the garden of the ordinary village lot in proper shape for planting. I am not sure but the spaded garden has some advantages over the plowed one. The soil can be turned up just where you want it, and as you want it, by the use of the spade, while the plow works alike throughout the garden, though the soil may vary in depth and nature to a considerable extent. A spaded garden always looks best at the beginning, and looks count in gardening as well as elsewhere. But the gardener who has a liking for neatness will make his garden look well, after a little, in spite of all obstacles.

HI.

The arrangement of the garden is a matter of more importance than one unfamiliar with garden- work would naturally suppose. The amateur is likely to think that it matters very little how it is arranged, so long as seeds are put into the ground and crops are harvested from it. The item of labor is not taken into consideration w^hen this opinion is formulated. It is possible to economize nearly if not quite half the work by so planning the garden that what is done in it can be done to the greatest possible advantage.

Time was when the average garden was made up of beds five or six feet across, and varying in length according to the amount of each kind of vegetable grown in them, a bed being devoted to each. The rows generally ran across these beds instead of lengthwise of them, and to get at the centre of the bed in weeding one w^as obliged to get down on hands and knees and reach out at arm's length. In very small gardens this may be as good an arrangement as any, because beds there will be narrow and less difficult to get at, but in gardens of ordinary size beds are no longer considered advisable, for more reasons than one. They waste space, because paths must be left between them; they give short rows, w^hich necessitate much more w^ork in cultivating than the long rows which do away with frequent turns for the adjustment of the cultivator ; and they prevent the gardener from doing as thorough work, because there is not the same chance to do it in a five- or six-foot row that there is in a long one where the action of the cultivator is not constantly interrupted. Of course beds can be kept as free from weeds as long rows can, but the point is it will require a good deal more work to do so, and what I am aiming at in this little book, is to so encourage the systematization of matters that work will be reduced to the minimum, because I am well aware that the less drudgery there is connected with garden-work the more gardens there will likely be.

Another argument for long-row planting is that such vegetables as require support, like peas, lima beans, and tomatoes, can be trained to much better advantage in the row than in the bed. When grown in beds, vines are likely to form a tangled network of branches, making it impossible to get to all parts easily without breaking them, while in row^s it is an easy matter to get to each side without any risk of injury. This argument holds good in the matter of weeding.

In planting in rows, uniform width ought not to be planned, because vegetables vary so much in size that some require but half the space needed by others. Cucumbers and squashes, for instance, will require a row two or three times as wide as peas, beans, cabbages, beets, salsify, and most vegetables of more or less upright growth. Therefore, before making the garden, plan where you are going to grow the different kinds of vegetables, and locate them with due regard to their habit of growth. Corn is upright in habit, but it must have plenty of room on all sides in order to do well. Potatoes spread considerably and must also have plenty of elbow-room. These will require two or three feet of space in the row. But salsify, parsnips, beets, early beans, and all the kinds of vegetables used as ''greens," are of more or less compact habit, and can be grown in rows a foot wide and have all the room they need in which to fully develop. The space between rows need not be more than a foot wide, if the garden is a small one, though a foot and a half would be more convenient.

It is an excellent plan for the amateur to make a diagram of his proposed garden before beginning work on it. Put it down on paper. Decide, first of all, what vegetables are to be grown, then decide where you will grow them. Locate them on your diagram the same as you propose to have them in your garden, taking pains, as suggested, to group each class of plants by themselves, as far as possible, — the term ''class," in this connection, .having reference solely to habit of growth rather fhan family relationship.

If the rows of the garden must run east and west, put tall-growing vegetables, like com, on the north rows. Next to them beans of the pole or climbing varieties, then peas. This is advised, because those of tallest groT\i:h will get the benefit of the sun without shading those of lower growth, as they would if planted on the sunward side. It is very necessary that sunshine should be reckoned with as an important factor in vegetable growing, and every thing should be done with a view to getting the greatest possible amount of benefit from it.

I would most earnestly advise the thorough cultivation of every portion of the garden enclosure. Most gardens are surrounded by a border of grass or weeds, it being somewhat difficult to run the plow close to the fence, hedge, or whatever marks the boundary line. This growth harbors worms and insects, and is constantly encroaching upon the cultivated soil. After the plow has done its work, take the spade and turn under every bit of sward. Turn it under deeply, that the grass may be smothered, and you have no further trouble from it. If you simply skim the surface, and invert the sod, it will not be long before the grass will grow up through it, and by the end of the season, or sooner, you will have as much sward as ever. Get rid of it, once for all, by doing the work thoroughly. Keep in mind the fact that a garden of the kind under consideration is for the purpose of growing vegetables and vegetables only, and see that all the strength of the soil goes into their production, and not into the growth of weeds and grass which are such aggressive things that they will appropriate the lion's share of nutriment, if allowed to do so.

If any portion of the garden is favored by greater exposure to the sun than other parts of it are, reserve this for such crops as radish, spinach, and early onions, whose growth must be as rapid as possible to be most satisfactory. A slow development of any of these vegetables means toughness and lack of flavor. You must force them ahead as rapidly as possible in order to secure best results, and in doing this richness of soil and warmth have to be combined. Of course the earliest crops of such vegetables as the radish and lettuce will be started, if not matured, in the hot-bed, but there should always be a succession of sowings, in order to secure a supply during the greater part of summer, and these later sowings will generally be made in the open ground, hence the necessity of giving them the best places in the garden. If the soil in which these vegetables are to be planted is not naturally light and loamy, it is a wise thing to add sand enough to make it light and friable, and to make use of such fertilizers as are quickest in effect. It is the early vegetable which will be most highly appreciated.

It is always well to plan for a rotation of crops as far as possible. In words, give your vegetables new locations each year if you can conveniently do so. This is advisable because most vegetables exhaust the soil in which they grow of certain elements necessary to their satisfactory development, and to plant them in a soil which you know to be lacking in these elements is poor practice. By shifting them about, year after year, we can generally secure favorable locations for them. If not ideal, this plan will certainly be an improvement on the short-sighted policy of confining vegetables to the same place in the garden season after season. If vegetable-growing is studied in a scientific way we can readily ascertain what elements are extracted from the soil by this, that, or the other vegetable, and the loss can be made good, to a great extent, by the use of fertilizers which can supply the soil with the material from which to construct the elements that have been drawn upon most heavily. In other words, we can give back to the soil that which has been taken from it, and fit it for the development of anything we attempt to grow by the employment of proper agents. In order to fully understand this subject it will be necessary for the studentgardener to inform himself as to the peculiarities of the various fertilizers on the market, also the peculiarities of the soil in his garden. But if he does not care to do this, let him consult with some person who has made a success of vegetable-growing, and be governed by his advice. This is, nine times out of ten, more satisfactory than experimenting, unless one's experiments can be carried on under the supervision of a practical man who has outgrown the experimenting period.

IV. Planting The Garden

As has been said in another chapter, it is unwise to begin work in the garden too early in the season. The ground must be given time to get rid of excessive moisture before it is safe to do much with it. Vegetables for the earlier crops must be started in the hot-bed rather than in the open ground, therefore very early work in the garden proper is not as necessar\^ as some amateurs seem to think, in order to raise early crops. The hot-bed starts them, the garden matures them, and thus the need for very early planting in beds is done away with.

Plowing can generally be done to the best advantage about the middle of April, at the north. It will not be safe to plant tender vegetables before the first of ^lay, because of frosts which are almost sure to occur, and in some localities the middle of the month is quite early enough. Each person vnll have to familiarize himself with local conditions, and

Planting the Garden be governed accordingly. Of course it is not possible for anyone to tell positively what the weather is going to be, but old residents will be able to tell you what may reasonably be expected in your locality, and it is safe to be governed by the wisdom which has grown out of years of obser\'ation on their part.

It must be borne in mind that earliest plantings do not always give the earliest returns. The thing to aim at is to get the seed in the ground just as soon as the latter is in the right condition for it, and not before. If seed is planted before the soil is warm and while it is wet, the chances are that it will fail to germinate. Even if it does come up it will make a slow, poor gro\\i:h until such time as weather and soil are favorable, and quite often, by that time, seedlings from early planting will be in a diseased condition which will prevent them from doing themselves justice until the effects of too early planting have been overcome. And by that time, nine times out of ten, seedlings from later plantings, when everything was favorable to healthy, vigorous growth, will have got ahead of them. It will therefore be seen that the gardener who gets his seed into the ground first is not the one who is surest of growing the earliest or the best crops.

The soil of the garden should be in a condition to pulverize readily before anjrthing is sown in it. Lumpy soil means the failure of a good deal of seed to grow.