The people's journal. (Pickens, S.C.) 1891-1903, 1896-06-18
BILL ARP IN
THE GARDEN.
II. 20 Succossful in Raising Fine veg
ctabIcs-A Good Farmer Will la'o
~ Good Garden.

"Fatc cannot harll ihci h",
dincd to-day" That is the way we we
feel lust after dinner, especlaliy II ,;S', mo
havc earned it--workcG for 1t boa!:y
and wanted it. But have heard folks
s.v thev were never hungry ana not
nvon The 0dOr OF cucumbers ana onions
n Tho dining room would excite their
annntite. / have heard others say they
hnd tho appetite, out were afraid to
indulge it because OF indigestion.
Such folks are to bb pitied. They
have M sympathy. But | sincerely
believe that work or physical exercise
isa remedy for both. | suppose tnat
he saws, "Now, let digestion wait on
u,HDcti,c and health on BOTH" Certain
il is his death was sudden and prema-
tnre, ior he lived only fifty rycars.
Milton understood this trouble, too, for
he saws that Adams sleep was sweet,
being bred from pure digestion. That's
the secrct--working in the gardcn-l
inherited that trait from the old man
Adam, | mcan---and ] sleep swcctly,
too, after have worked in my garden.
There is no insomnia about me, but
Mrs. Arp suffers from it sometimes
when I am snoring like hippopota-
mus.
was ruminating about the value Of
u good garden to the family we had
an excellent dinner to-day. and
counted up the cost. We have live III
the family, and the dinner cost MS only
) cents apiece, and there was enough
left for two or three more. We had q
small piece of middling meat, about
half a pound, that was boiled with the
beans, and there were seven different
kinds OF vegetables from my garden.
The butter and buttermilk were home
made. The rice and cOrnmCal and
hucklcberries cost a iittlc--nOt much
Every thing was wcll-cookcd, and all
that was wanted was an appetite and
good digestion.
am reasonably proud OF my garden,
for 1T is all my own work. | prepared
the ground and dressed it and opened
the burrows and planted the seed and
cultivated the plants and killed the
weeds, and it is my especial pleasure
to watch everything as it grows, and
gather tho vegetables and wash them
at the back door and call the good wife
and children out to sec them and listen
to their compliments. We have had Il
ag;linstIt. Every hill was first spadod |
out q foot deep and filed with water,
and it had soaked into the ground ] |
filled up the hole with mixture OF |
top soil ana barnyard scrapings and |
siftcd ashes and put on some moro
water. Every lurrOW | opened for
beans and peas and bects let water
run in it, and then put the fertilizer
in and planted the seed. had eighty
holes 20 dig for tomatoes and forty for
squashcs, and as many more for Gu
cumbcrs, and Notwithstanding the
drought everything has grown vigor-
ously. 1t is hard work and takes pa
ticncc to lay the foundation in this
way, but it pays. My squash vines
cover space OF four feet spuarc to
each hill, and my tomato plants are
five feet high and full, OF healthy fruit
We'll, now to tell the whole truth, |
have hydrant in the center Of the
garden and when the dry, hot weather
was at its worst | opened small trench.
es close by the roots OF the plants and
turned the water on and let it rul
slowly and soak in and aftcrward.
covered the trenches with dry dirt
This, too, is trouble, but it paid well
Some folks sprinkle, but that doe.
harm and no good. 1t bakes the surface
and never reaches the rOots-sprinklt lt
nothing but grass. Where watcr i:
plenty and convenient there is no OK
cusc for Il poor garden. 1t is bcttcr tt
dig deep and fcrtilizc and cultivate {
square roc we'll than to skim over hal
an acre "niggor fashion and SEQ i
all dry up when the dry drought, a.
Cobc calls it, comes. The intensive
system Is the best for garden, | know
from long experience. 1t made M
sad to see the crops on the railrOa'
between Marietta and Atlanta tn
other day. Acres and acres Of cor
not six inches high and cotton almos
invisible. 1t did look like perishin
to death In the nume Of the Lord.
Is poor country, | know, but tho
could SOW it down in peas and grad
ally improve it so that IL Georgi;
wouldn't be ashamed for travellers
ride through It,
1t is astonishing how much intlucn
one good farmer has over the neig
vcry cnviOus of each other and will t
TO keep up with the best. hear Sol
say that their oats crop is a total ia
ure, and will not be fit to cut. | soc
few acres Of oats in field not far frC
me that will make II good crop.
course there Is something in the Ian
but there Is moro in the farmir
Deep plowing to begin with is abs
lutcly necessary In Turning. | do
moan deep turning, but deep plowir
| know farmer who always folio
the turn plow with bull-tongue
the Same furrow, and he makes go
crops whether it rains or not. \
good neighbor, Widow Fields, has
hydrant in hor garden, but she alwa
has the finest garden in tho town, Il
the secret is deep blowing and fort
izing. | can overlook her work frt
my window, and it excites mo to Ike
in hailing distance. She has an &C
in the highest state of cultivation, a
will make moro on it than will
made on fifty acres Of that land be!t
Marietta. Work on the gardens mt
not stop. Keep planting succossi
crops every ten days or two weeks, a.
have fresh supply. a good, lar
family can live well on an acre for fl
months in the year. Raise your ov
strawberries and raspbcrries and b,
wild berries enough for jam and jell
Then, If you have grapes and peach
around, you can live like prince az
always have something nice for cor
pany. a few flowers in the garde
will help to make it attractive ar
my wife wants all tho old-fashiOnt