News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1886-09-02
THE FARM AND GARDEN.
A Little Talk About the Garden In August.

Edward Hersey says: The early po-
tatoes should be dug as soon as full
grown and the land cultivated to kill
| the weeds and to prepare it for some
late crop. German sweet turnips may
be set during the fir two weeks of the
month and a good crop for winter use
obtained if the plants are of good size.
English fiat turnips may be sOwn any
time before the 10th of the month, and
if the weather DC wet enough for the
seed to terminate there will be time to
get full crop. AS soon as the peas
are full grown the vines should be
pulled up so as to clear the ground OF
weeds, even if the land is not wanted
for a late crop, for of all the crops grown
in the garden the pea is the worst to
keep free from weeds; somehow the
little weeds hide and wait until the
peas begin to ripen, then they rapidly
push their way up and will riPen Won
derful crop of seeds unless destroyed by
clearing the ground. The parsnlp, car
rot and onion need close attention dur
ing this month or the weeds will get
the advantage: the parsnlP and carrot
make their best growth during August,
and it is important that they should moo
only be kept clean of weeds but that
the soil should be kept light and loose,
so that it shall not form hard crust
and thus become dry. The strawberry
bed set last spring should be carefully
looked after to the end of the month;
both the weeds and grass should be
taken not to disturb the new plans that
set from the runners; a careless cult
vator will often destroy many of the
best plants by dragging them out with
his hoe, which he will draw through
the runners in way to pull up all the
new plants. The raspberry and black
berry plantations should be kept we'll
cultivated, and which high enough, cut
back to make the vines stocky as we'll
as hardy; but this work should not be
done too early in the season, or a sec
ond growth will start which will not
be as hearty as the first. The current
bushes should also be. kept well cult
waited during this month. This will be
but slight task if the bushes have pre-
viously been well cared for; it is not
half the work to keep a row of currant
bushes clean during the entire year as it
is to clean it out twice year and let it
go weedy the rest of the season. If the
bushes are kept in good condition the
leaves will be large and will keep a
dark green, and the fruit will keep on
them until September, but if the bushes
are neglected, SO the leaves turn yellow,
or the worms are permitted to cut the
leaves badly, the fruit will not keep
good until the first of August. There
are few crops grown that are more neg
lected than the currant and few that
will bear neglect better.
The asparagus bed should not be neg
lected, though there are few crops grown
that will bear neglect better during this
month, but because it can be neglected
is no proof that it is best to neglect it.
1t is really easier to keep the bed clean
during the entire year than to neglect it
in the autumn and thus let the land get
full of new weeds. 1t is so much easier
to go through in this month and pull all
of the weeds out than it would be to
destroy all the weeds next wear that
would come from the ripened seeds. If
the weeds were not pulled that an effort
should be made to find time to thor
oughly clean out the bed.
1t is we'll settled fact that it is i'm
possible to have good garden without
keeping it so well cultiva ted that the
weeds will have no chance to grow; a
garden that is permitted to become
overrun with weeds is an unsightly OBJ
ject to the owner and all who may have
occasion to pass it, while a clean, well
kept garden is examined with pleasure
by every enc. If every owner of gar
i l. j. I
is really true, that garden can be kept
clean of weeds during the entire year
with less labor, after the first year or
two, than it can be kept clean during
only the first part of the season, we
should see more clean gardens during
August and September than we now do.