Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1885-05-11
agricultural department.
EARLY GARDENING

SAhA4 1IN
1t needs to be said again and
again that no advantage can be gain
ed by planting garden before the
soil is in a proper condition for the
termination of seeds. 1t is not an
unworthy ambition to desire to be
ahead of all others in the matter of
early vegetables, to boast the finest
lettuce, peas, radishes and potatoes
in the neighborhood, but such ends
will not be attained by rushing seeds
into the ground as soon as the snow
fairly disappears. Plant the garden
when the soil is yet damp, while the
nights are cold, and the mornings
frosty, and thel seeds will refuse to
throw out their tender shoots, and
either linger weeks after their APP
pointed time for appearing or else rot
in the ground. Plants started under
such discouraging conditions rarely
thrive afterward, even under careful
cultivation. They seem never to
gain the vigor of plants that started
in growth under more congenial cir
cumstances. Their hard struggle to
push through the cold, stiff soil APP
parently SO exhausts their vital en-
ergy, that they never recover. 1t is
better to wait in every case until the
soil is thoroughly warm and measur-
ably dry before disturbing the sur
face at all. OF course the location
of the ground and the peculiar ma
ture of the soil itself helps to deter
mine the proper time for ploughing.
A garden with sloping surface, or
an open, sandy soil is not likely to
be made lumpy by early cultivation,
though in other respects it may be
quite unfit for the best growth of
plants. 1t is not unfrequently the
case that gardens planted late in the
season overtake and excel those
started very early. In the former
case, the seeds germlnate quickly,
and grow to maturity unchecked in
the warm soil and genial air. There
is no implied excuse here for tardi-
ness or negligence in the preparation
of the garden but caution against
that haste which, in this instance.
makes waste both of time and ma
terial. If there is no way of forcing
plants in hot-beds, or otherwise, an
early garden can be ensured only by
careful preparation of the soil, by
choosing the most favorable time for
putting in seeds, and afterwards by
frequent hoeing, watering, and gen
eral culture of the growing plants.
There are many ways of getting
early crops, or of trying to get them,
such as starting the plants in the
house or hot-beds, and covering them
with glass, etc., after they are set
out. But when these methods are not
adopted, there is still a chance to
have early vegetables and a good
garden. 1t is simply to select the
warmest and driest soil, and SOW OF
plant early. 1t IS not desirable OF
wise to SOW or plant the main crops
before the soil is in good working
condition. But for few early crops
on a small scale, we can well afforC
to run little risk of losing our seeC
by too early sowing. One thing
however should not be overlooked
Do not depend on this early sowing
but SOW or plant again little later
when the soil and weather are more
favorable. If the first sowing sue
ceeds, you are so much ahead: if i
fails, you have lost only the seet
and your labor. You can well afforC
to run the risk. There are som
crops which can be sown the momen
the frost is out of the soil, with littl
or no risk. Among these we ma
mention peas, cabbage, caulifower
spinach, onion, lettuce, celery, beet
carrot, parsnip. etc. 1t is seldom
that these crops are hurt by earl
frost. Last year frost in May de
stroyed many cabbage plants, bu
this is a very unusual occurrence
Among the crops which we would re
SOW without waiting to see if the frs
sowing will escape, are beets, radisf
es, cabbage, caulifiower, beans an
sweet corn.