The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1898-04-13

the pineapples are grown in the open
without any covering at all. They
are weeded and cultivated with a scuf-
fie hoe about once in two or three
months.
The trees and scrub are removed from
the land by grubbing, and after a
thorough raking the land is in shape
for planting. Some growers leave the
stumps of the trees in the ground, but
il retards cultivation to some extent,
as 1t takes years for them to rot. Moth
ing should be burnt ON the land, as the
valuable vegetable matter is destroyed
in this manner and the land will re-
quire more fertilizing.
Ten thousand plants to the acre is
the general plan of planting, set from
eighteen TO twenty inches apart each
way, with space allowed for paths, but
the finer varieties are planted further
apart, but growers have begun to real
lie that closer planting Of the inner
varitieS is expedient. as the plants Will
then support one another when fruit
ing and save time in propping. The
land is marked off with a marker in
the shape of fork, with prongs the re-
quired distance apart After removing
the slips for planting from the parent
plant they are stripped of the hard
leaves that form at the base and a
small portion of the base Of the stem
is cut with sharp knife, after which
they are planted, usually with the aid
If a "dibble." Some growers imme-
diately after planting put pinch Of
cOtton-seed meal in the bud to prevent
clogging from dust and sand during
the heavy winds The best planting
time is in July, August and September.
A few months after planting when they
have rooted they are generally fertil-
lied with cottOnseed meal. blood and
bone or other commercial fertilizers.
This is repeated about every four
months until fruiting time, which is
generally eighteen or twenty months
after the planting of slips. After the
plants are fruited they form suckers
below the base. which are allowed to
grow, TO prevent replanting; in this
way fruiting can be continued in one
field for seven or eight years without
replanting. The slips appear under the
| fruit on the stalk when the apple at
tains a certain size, and after the
apples are picked the life and sub
stance of the plant goes into the slips,
which are allowed to remain on the
plant until about eight or ten inches in
| length. when they are broken on and
after trimming are set out. / have
counted as high as twentyseven 81 ps
10 one pldHt. Jul tIAdA vas N<NccP
tionaI. the average in the common va
riety being four slips to plant. Thus
If a field of ten acres was fruiting and
placing the percentage of fruiting as
low as so per cent, the grower could
figure on about 100000 slips. A we'll
cared-for field will safely fruit 80 per
cent. Crowns" are sometimes planted.
| but not generally. as they are not as
true as slips and take longer TO fruit,
| besides being shipped on the apples.
A pretty plant can be obtained by
| buying a pineapple and taking il in the
| left hand and the crown in the right
and giving ii a vigorous twist To the
| left the crown will come out and after
| two or three days. when the base Of
il has sufficiently dried. strip of about
\ five or six Of the small lower leaves.
| then cut off about One-half an inch Of
the hard stem, when, by close exam
nation little yellow spots viii be OBJ
| served. These are what take root
| Get some rich. dry soil and fiji large
| flower pot or a small butter tub and
plant about three-quarteTs of an inch
| in depth. Keep in the sun always and