Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1876-06-02
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BRATTLEBoRo:
FRIDAY EVENING, JUNE 2, 1876.
Tomato Culture.


In our observation OF gardening W Q have
found very few people who got the best re-
suits out OF their tomato plants. Either
they were selected without knowledge, on
the supposition that there is not much
choice in varieties; or they were allowed
TO lay on the ground and have their fine
flavor spollt or the vines were left UNI
pruned TO sprawl over several square feet
of room, and waste their energies in pro-
ducing dwarred fruit and useless stalks
and blossoms until frost came.
Now, there is just as much difference
between large, solid, smooth-feshed to-
mato, and little, wrinkled combination OF
seeds, water and skin, as there Is between
your grandmother's apple dumping and
one that you buy at the corner grocery.
We have raised dozen varieties in one
season, and never found anything better
than the Eureka and Trophy. though the
Gen. Grant was good-during its first
term" Some sorts will degenerate, like
potatoi The plants should be stocky, aDd
well seasoned to the air, before setting out.
In most soils they should be set deep-half
way up the stem indeed, the Jersey gard
eners put them in nearly mp TO the first
leaf, as they stand dry weather better. 1t
is an exploded notion that they do not need
a rich soil. If we'll fed, they will grow
rankly 10 be sure but the pruning shears
will take care of that. The most vigorous
plants will give the greatest weight and
best quality of fruit. Cultivatlng, to keep
the soil loose and free from weeds, does the
young plants almost as much good as 1t
does cabbages.
But 1t is from lack of training and trim
ming that the most failures are made. For
garden culture we believe the single stake
system the best, though frames will an
swer; and it is a good plan TO let some
plants lie low on bushes or sticks, as in
very dry seasons they do we'll. As in our
short season early tomatoes are desirable,
select half dozen Of your best and earli-
est poisoning plants for forcing tie them
loosely with large twine to a stake four feet
high; as soon as the first cluster of bios
SONS appears, pinch out the upward-tend-
ing stem-nip all the lateral branches that
start out from time to time above the leaves (;
in short, concentrate all the growth of the
will have ripe tomatoes two or three weeks
earlier than would otherwise be the case.
And nearly all plants should be treated af-
ter the same fashion, though not so severe
ly pruned. We have trained plant of
the Trophy five feet high, to stout
stake, having cross-pieces; it bore clus-
ter Of fruit to each foot-the bottom one
containing twenty-three tomatoes, mostly
OF large size Zone of them weighing over a
pound) which began TO ripen on the Goth of
July. By the stake or frame system The
fruit is kept cleaner, has better ventilation,
ripens more evenly, and is better favored.
The usual fault in trimming tomatoes
consists in cutting off leaves, which should
never be done, or nipping the ends of lat
eral branches after they have grown. The
plant should be kept clean OF lateral sprouts
from the first they are, in our climate,
mere robbers, unless you are after yield OF
green fruit