Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1868-04-28
Farmers Gardens.

| During the busy spring month,
farmers should not neglect, or as toe
many do, forget their garden work
A very little time now, will be suffi-
cient to st art garden which before
the summer is over will be worth
many times The value Of labor be-
slowed upon it. Most farmers paw
far too little attention to their gar.
| dens because they think it " don't
pay but it does pay, and pay well
too. A few hours labor inves In
a vegetable garden will give return
which will be really surprising to
one who has never tried it. In two
hours man and team could pillow
and harrow piece of land large
enough TO raise all the vegetables
any common family would require
for year. The work of laying off
into beds, raking, planting &C., can
be done at odd moments which
would otherwise be- almost wasted,
thus reducing the actual cost of the
garden to almost nothing.
Many farmers think they cannot
afford TO have large variety of veg
etables, but there is no reason for
this !; the farmer, if he chooses, may
have as large and good a variety as
can be found in any of our city mar
kets. all he has to do to obtain
them is to prepare the ground and
plant the seed and occasionally spend
a few of his spare moments in hoing
them, and he may have almost any>
thing be wishes for, A great many
farmers think that if they get
patch Of potatoes and few onions
planted, they have all the garden
that is needed, but they might with
but very little tronbIe have other
vegetables which would materially
aid the housewife in answering the
never ending question what shall
| get for dinner to~day 2"
One great reason why farmers
think their gardens of 30 little &C,
count is because they are apt to
plant their vegetables so late that
they do rot have time to ripen before
they are killed by the frosts. Usu,
ally garden crops are injured much
more by being planted so late that
they do not have time to ripen in
the fall, than they are by being
planted too early. A few early POI
tatoes may just as well be planted in
April and be ready tor the table by
the tenth Of July, as to wait till
May or June before planting as
many do. A little sweet corn for
table use should be planted in this
month, probably it will escape tie
frosts, and if it does, il will be ready
for the table month on six weeks
earlier than that planted for the field
crop. Onions which are especially
valuable for winter use, should be
planted as soon as possible, SO that
they may be harvested before they
are injured by fall rains or frosts.-
Beans which are very valuable on
account of the ease with which they
may be preserved for any length of
time, should be planted during the
latter part of this month, or the first
Of the next Beets too should be
planted soon so that they may be
gathered before the weather becomes
SO cold as to injure their crowns.
thus causing them to rot sooner
The parsnip is but little appreciated
or cultivated in this country because
Of its tendancy to become wild
and poisonous when neglected, and
it is one of our most delicious but
valuable vegetables, and if properly
taken care of, and no more seed al
lowed to ripen than is needed for
anting there is no danger of its be
coming in any way hurtfuI. The
roots may be gathered in the fall,
or left in the ground through the en-
tire winter, as they are not injured
by any amount of cofd. The satisfy
or vegetable oyster should be more
widely cultivated than it is. 1t may
be kept in the cellar, or in the
ground through the winter, and may
be used at any time from October
till May, furnishing an excellent sub
stitute for the genuine oyster, pos
sessing as it does the peculiar flavor
of the we'll known mollaso.
There is no good reason why ey~
cry farmer should not have all Of
these vegetables and many more
such as peas, cabbages, cauIifiowers,
lettuce, celery &c, and scarcely any
one who will take the trouble to try
them, for a singIo year. will ever be
willing to be without them, but will
be much more apt to add to his list
of necessary vegetables. and wonder
how he lived so long without them.
A FARMER STUDENT.