THE CULTIVATION OF VEGETABLES.

Before usurping the garden vegetables singly, I shall define the overall follow of cultivation, that applies to any or all.

The purposes of cultivation ar 3 to urge obviate weeds, and to stimulate growth by (1) material possession air into the soil and releasing out of stock fertiliser, and (2) by preserving wetness.

As to weeds, the gardener of any expertise needn't be told the importance of keeping his crops clean. He has learned from bitter and expensive expertise the value of material possession them get something resembling a begin. He is aware of that one or 2 days' growth, once they're uprise, followed maybe by daily close to of rain, might simply double or treble the work of improvement a patch of onions or carrots, which wherever weeds have earned any size they can't be taken out of sowed crops while not doing a good deal of injury. He additionally realizes, or should, that each day's growth suggests that with great care abundant offered fertiliser purloined from beneath the terribly roots of his legitimate crops.

Instead of material possession the weeds go away with any fertiliser, he ought to be furnishing a lot of, for clean and frequent cultivation won't solely break the soil up automatically, however let in air, wetness and warmth all essential in effecting those chemical changes necessary to convert non- offered into offered fertiliser. Long before the science within the case was discovered, the soil cultivators had learned by observation the need of keeping the soil nicely untangled regarding their growing crops. Even the lanky and untaught aborigine saw to that that his Indian not solely place a nasty fish beneath the Hill of maize however plied her shell hoe over it. Plants ought to breathe. Their roots would like air. you would possibly similarly expect to seek out the rosy glow of happiness on the wan cheeks of a cotton-mill kid slave on expect to visualize the luxuriant dark inexperienced of healthy plants in an exceedingly suffocated garden.

Important because the question of air is, that of water ranks beside it. you will not see initially what the matter of frequent cultivation should do with water. however allow us to stop a flash and appearance into it. Take a strip of blotter, dip one finish in water, and watch the wetness run up hill, take in through the blotter. The scientists have labelled that "capillary attraction" the water crawls up very little invisible tubes fashioned by the feel of the blotter. currently take an identical piece, cut it across, hold the 2 cut edges firmly along, and take a look at it once more. The wetness refuses to cross the line: the affiliation has been cut.

In the same means the water hold on within the soil once a rain begins directly to flee once more into the atmosphere. That on the surface evaporates 1st, which that has soaked in begins to soak in through the soil to the surface. it's feat your garden, through the numerous soil tubes, even as sure as shooting as if you had a two-inch pipe and a internal-combustion engine, pumping it into the gutter night and day! Save your garden by stopping the waste. it's the simplest factor within the world to try to to cut the pipe in 2. By frequent cultivation of the dirt no more than one or 2 inches deep for many little vegetables the soil tubes ar unbroken broken, and a mulch of dirt is maintained. attempt to endure each a part of your garden, particularly wherever it's not shaded, once in each 10 days or fortnight. will that appear like an excessive amount of work? you'll be able to push your wheel hoe through, and so keep the dirt mulch as a relentless protection, as quick as you'll be able to walk. If you look forward to the weeds, you'll nearly ought to crawl through, doing a lot of or less hurt by distressful your growing plants, losing all the fertiliser (and they're going to take the cream) that they need consumed, and truly fitting a lot of hours of infinitely a lot of disagreeable work. If the beginner at agriculture has not been convinced by the facts given, there's just one factor left to win over him expertise.

Having given most area to the reason for constant care during this matter, the question of strategies naturally follows. Get a wheel hoe. {the simplest|the solely|the best} kinds won't only prevent Associate in Nursing infinite quantity of your time and work, however do the work higher, substantially higher than it are often done by hand. You will grow sensible vegetables, particularly if your garden could be a terribly little one, while not one among these labor-savers, however I will assure you that you just can ne'er regret the tiny investment necessary to obtain it.

With a wheel hoe, the work of conserving the soil mulch becomes terribly easy. If one has not a wheel hoe, for tiny areas terribly fast work are often finished the scuffle.

The matter of keeping weeds cleansed out of the rows and between the plants within the rows isn't therefore quickly accomplished. wherever hand-work is critical, let it's done directly. Here ar some sensible suggestions that may scale back this work to a minimum, (1) Get at this work whereas the bottom is soft; as presently because the soil begins to dry out once a rain is that the best time. beneath such conditions the weeds can pull out by the roots, while not break. (2) instantly before weeding, re-examine the rows with a wheel hoe, cutting shallow, however even as shut as attainable, feat a slender, plainly visible strip that should be hand- weedless. the most effective tool for this purpose is that the double wheel hoe with disc attachment, or hoes for giant plants. (3) See to that that not solely the weeds ar force however that each in. of soil surface is jerky. it's totally as necessary that the weeds simply ontogenesis be destroyed, as that the larger ones be force up. One stroke of the weeder or the fingers can destroy 100 weed seedlings in less time than one weed are often force out once it gets an honest begin. (4) Use one among the tiny hand-weeders till you become sure-handed with it. Not solely might a lot of work be done however the fingers are saved needless wear.

The adept use of the wheel hoe are often noninheritable through follow solely. the primary factor to find out is that it's necessary to observe the wheels only: the blades, disc or rakes can watch out of themselves.

The operation of "hilling" consists in drawing up the soil regarding the stems of growing plants, sometimes at the time of second or third hoeing. It wont to be the follow to hill everything that might be hilled "up to the eyebrows," however it's step by step been discarded for what's termed "level culture"; and you'll pronto see the explanation, from what has been same regarding the escape of wetness from the surface of the soil; for in fact the 2 higher sides of the Hill, which can be diagrammatical by Associate in Nursing trigon with one aspect horizontal, provide a lot of exposed surface than the extent surface diagrammatical by the bottom. In wet soils or seasons hilling is also judicious, however terribly rarely otherwise. it's the extra disadvantage of creating it troublesome to keep up the thereforeil mulch that is so fascinating.

Rotation of crops.

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There is another factor to be thought of in creating every vegetable do its best, which is crop rotation, or the subsequent of any vegetable with a special type at following planting.

With some vegetables, like cabbage, this is often virtually imperative, and much all ar helped by it. Even onions, that ar popularly alleged to be the proving exception to the rule, ar healthier, and do similarly once another crop, provided the soil is as finely small-grained and made as a previous crop of onions would depart it.

Here ar the elemental rules of crop rotation:

(1) Crops of identical vegetable, or vegetables of identical family (such as turnips and cabbage) mustn't follow one another.

(2) Vegetables that feed close to the surface, like corn, ought to follow deep-rooting crops.

(3) Vines or leaf crops ought to follow root crops.

(4) Quick-growing crops ought to follow those occupying the land all season.

These ar the principles that ought to verify the rotations to be followed in individual cases. the correct thanks to attend to the present matter is once creating the arrangeting plan. you'll then have time to try to to it properly, and can ought to provides it no any thought for a year.

With the higher than suggestions in mind, and place to use , it'll not be troublesome to grant the crops those special attentions that ar required to create them do their perfect.

THE CULTIVATION OF VEGETABLES.