The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1874-05-16
FARM AND GARDEN.
4 Few Relishes.


Much has been written, and more has been
said, about the UNMARRIED and unsavory diet of
farmers. The mention OF the country is like
ly to call up in the minds OF town people
visions of an unccasing round of pork, bread
and potatoes, relieved occasionally by fruits,
poultry and eggs. There are abundant rea
sons why fresh meat and fish are not com
mon on the tables of farmers. But there is
absolutely no reason why farmers should not
have an abundance OF the rellshes that
make the commonest food palalable. diff
ferent flavor may be given to any Kind OF meat
every day in the week by the use OF some veg
eta5les that can be grown with little trouble
or expense The French, better than any peo-
ple, perhaps, understand how to make appe-
tizing dishes out of very common sorts of
meat by the judiclous use of tlavors impaired
by vegetables. AS a rule, the only vegetables
raised in farmers gardens, for the purpose
named, are onions, pepper-grass, sage for sau-
sage making, peppers and hOrse-radish. The
latter is commonly allowed to tight lis way
with the grass and burdocks in some fence
corner, and is consequently hare, tough and
ill.flavored.
We will mention few of the relishcs that
can be easily produced in any garden and can
be cultivated by women and children, First
is the radsh, 50 common in towns, so rare in
cities, so excellent everywhere. To raise rad
ishes to perfection the ground should be some
whatSandy and made very rich with well rot
ted manure. The quicker the growth the more
tender and mild they will be- To insure a
supply, a row suitable for family should be
sown every week from this time on till Octo-
Der. The first sowing may be done in the
same rows with early vegetables, as bects and
onions. If radish seeds are dropped in the
rows every six inches, they will come up IN
a few days, show the row, allow the SOIL to be
worked before the other vegetables appear,and
the radishes can be pulled and eaten before
the other vegetables are large enough to thin
out For later use they can be sown by them.
selves. The shorttop or round varieties are
generally the finest favored, though the lon
ger sorts yield much more beautifully. For
fall and winter use the white aud black Span
ish varieties should be planted
Celery needs more care and attention, but
it richly repays the trouble. 1t requires
very rich soil and one not liable to suffer from
drought The seeds should be planted in
bep IN April, or during the early part of May,
anu the plants must be cultivated by hand TIL
they are of size to transplant, which will
ordinarily be about the first Of July. As the
crop is designed for fall or winter use, there
is no advantage in Fastening it. The outside
leaves and the ends of the roots should be
trimmed off before setting out The plants
should be set in rows four feet apart, the plants
standing five or six inches apart in rows. A
time should be selected for this work when
the ground is moist, as the plants are delicate
The first culture consists in keeping the soil
loose and free from weeds. When the leaves
attain a height of twelve or fifteen inches, the
operation of banking them with earth com
mences. This consists in gathering the leaves
together with one hand and drawing the
~. |, ,-tt /, In A
lar embankment must then be formed by the
aid of a spade and hoe. AS the leaves in
crease in length, more earth must be drawn
I'D. The leaves at no time should be more
tnau four inches above the bank of earth
The practice of setting celery plants in deep
trenches is now generally abandoned by gar
deners.
No garden has its full supply of vegetables,
no dish of mutton should be placed on the
table, without parsley. 1t is one of the most
beautiful of plants, and its exquisite flavor
renders palatable the coarscst OF meats. Its
peculiar smell neutralzos the odor given to
the breath by eating onions. Early in the
season it is excellent for garnishing dishes on
the table, while at all times it is useful for
favoring soups and stews. The seeds are
slow in coming up, and for this reason it is
well to plant few radish or cabbage
seeds in the rows, that they may mark the
lines, and enable the ground between them to
be kept free of weeds. The soil should be
very rich for parsley, and pulverizeG deeply
Sweet herbs are worthy of cultivation for
the purpose of ailording tlavors. The list
should include sage, marjoram, rosemary,
summer savory and thyme. Enough of each
for the use of family can be raised from the
seed contained III one of the papers ordnar
lily sold Tor ten cents. The seeds may be
planted in drills, the same rs garden vegeta
bles, or in small beds such as women like to
tend.-Prdirie Farmer.