Fort Worth weekly gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-10-30
The Kitchen Garden.

Mr.. H. G. Hastings says good
kitchen garden is what every person with
land enough to make 1t on should have
in Texas, and yet only about one in
twenty, on an average, has 1.-THE other
nineteen have their gardens in tin cans.
Ask this tin brigade why they have no
regular gardens and they will tell you
that such and such natural conditions are
against it, aud that, therefore, 1t is tin
cans or no thing. Mr.. Hastings then
proceeds to state that this patural con-
ditiou- by pothesis is a hypothesis without
foundation. The fault as O rule rests
with the people themselves rather than
with the country. Many of our people
were brought up and educated in the
Northern way of doing things, and when
they come to Texas aud attempt to make
practical use of their education 80 far
as it relates TO the kitchen garden they
find it failing to work, and thereupon
Texas gets full credit for the failure. OF
course the credit Is correct in that par
ticular case, but had the education been
on Texas gardening itstead of gard ening
in vastly different region, and Texas
methods had been applied accordingly,
no cause for failure would have found
any legitimate existence. he who gar
dens in Texas must conduct his opera
lions in strict conformity to Texas re-
quIrements-it will never be safe to de-
pend upon the methods employed in
other and distant regions of orr common
country.
Mr.. Hastings, in pointing out some of
the causes working against gardening in
Texas, says our people are prone to the
culture OF too large an acreage. A
smaller acreage deeply prepared and we'll
feTtilized, if necessary, and above all +,
we'll cultivated, will Invariably give the
larger results. No matter how rich the
soil IN mineral elements of plant food it
is still very apt to be deficient in decom-
posed vegetable matter. The garden
soil must he light and friable, and if q
stiff clay soil, nothing save plenty of de-
composed vegetable matter can make it
that way.
Another common cause of failure can
be traced to bad seeds. Old and unre-
liable seeds are often on sale at some of
the stores, and since they are offered
comparatively cheap, as rule, people
buy them and reap disappointment.
There is now no need of purchasing such
seeds. as the efficient mail service brings
you seeds from any reliable house, and
III
house can be depended upon for freshness
and high grade.
Then there is too much Indifference on
the part of many Texans go far as relates
to varieties. First learn what varieties
succeed in Texas, and then order those
varieties exclusively. 1t will never do
to pick up Northern seed catalogue
and order from 1t the first thing you turn
to in the line of what you desire to grow,
without consideration as to whether or
not il would succeed here. II might be
all right for other sections and yet be all
wrong for Texas. Do not be guided in
your selection By what the catalogue
says, for the person who got il up may
not have had Texas in mind at all. Cam
ada and Texas are alike TO the Northern
scotsman. Seeds should, as rule, be
sown nearly twice as deep here as in the
North. In sowing seeds always remem-
Der to firm, that is, pack or press down
the soil upon them. II the soil be moist
and the seeds have any vitality this will
insure their termination.
One great drawback TO the garden in
Texas is our usual fall drouth of greater
or less severity, and which always affects
the gardens more or less. You will
greatly lessen damage from drouth by
getting plenty of vegetable matter
worked thoroughly and deeply Into the
soil. If this matter should not be at all
needed as a fertilizer it will still be in
dispensable as a mechanical agent. 1t
prevents packing of the soil in drouth,
while at tine same time It Ii an important
absorber and retainer OF moisture.