The Portland daily press., 1899-05-30
GARDEN WORK.
An Experienced Gardeners Plans
For Early Planting.

An experienced Gurdeucrs Plans
For Early Planting.
The first thing that do in the spring
when the ground is in condition tc
work is to prepare the soil for early
onions and for setting strawberry
plants, says a successful New York
state gardener in The Country Gentle-
man. Ghc ground for Strawberries was
plowed in the fall and the fertilizer APP
piled dlring the winter, and as soon as
1t dries sufficiently to work l begin to
harrow it. First / use harrow that
works the ground deeply and finish
with TIE Acme harrow. If it is neces-
sary to put the ground in good condi-
ton 1t is replowed and again narrowed.
When the soil has been worked until IL
has been finely pulverized, l furrow II
for the plants as follows: 1 take the
Planet Junior l2 tooth cultivator, attach
the irrigating turnover to the rear and
put on marker that gauges the row,
80 that after the first one has been made
with the garden line all the others can
be made straight by the use of tho
marker set the strawberry plants 80
early in the spring that the leaves have
only just started to grow and the ground
is full of moisture. When planted 80
early, il the planting is we'll done,
hardly plant will fail to live and
grow. By having the ground all ready
for working when it was in condition,
have for several years been able to get
my strawberries all set in April.
Ialso try to plant onion sets and SOW
onion seed in April or as soon as posi-
BILE after the ground is in condition to
work. The seed bed for onions requires
a good deal Of work to get in condition
that the seed drill and wheel hoe work
we'll on it. grow onions on land that
the year before received a heavy dress
ing Of stable manure for growing crop
of vegetables, and for the onions I use
nothing but ashes. l get no weed seed
in the ashes. and l have less work weed
ing and cultivating the crop. The usual
distance apart for the onion rows is Is
inches, but my plan is to make the
rows 12 inches apart and leave every
ninth row for an alley, thus making
beds of eight rows each. If the field is
so level, or is net well drained, so that
the water will be likely to stand on the
surface of the ground after rain, a
light furrow can be made in the two
foot alley to help drain the onion beds.
The alley will also make convenient
place for throwing the weeds when
wedding the onions.
Iwant most of my onion crop to ripen
in September and 1 will SOW for the
main crop Yellow Globe Danvers As
want few bunch and picking onions
early in the summer, l will plant the
sets of the White Multiplier, and these
will be followed with the Barletta pick
ling onions from seed. After these will
come the Danvers and later the Prize
takers. will also grow few bushels
of the Red Wethersfeld for winter and
late spring use.
As soor as possible after setting the
strawberry plants / run the Planet Jun
Tor cultivator with pulverizer attach
ment between two or three rows of the
plants, which prepares the ground for the
seed drill. In these spaces l drill double
rows Of lettuce and radishes. These are
worked with the wheel hoe. The ground
will be cleared of the crops in June and
the rows afterward worked with the
horse and cultivator.
The transplanting Of vegetable plants
begins early in May and is continued
until July. First we transplant the
cabbages and caulihowers for the early
market and next the early celery, and
the last of June the plants are set for
the late crop. 1t is only by working
hard and making long days that we are
able to get everything planted in its
season.