The evening times., 1900-04-13
SIEGE GARDENS AND CROPS.
Fresh Vegetables for Heleagucred
GarrisOns n Possibility.

GarrisOns Possibility.
| CFrom the Spectator)
Great though the sufferings of the Lady
smith garrison were from want OF meat
and good bread the lack of vegetables to-
ward the end of the siege and blockade
had even worse results. II the scarcity
of any green vegetables. and later OF
| vegetables of any sort. did not cause an
outbreak of scurvy among the whites
the Kaffirs are said to hae suffered from
it severely-it had the worst effect on
the general health of the garrison and
! people and the want of carrots onions
turnips, and other pot herbs for making
soup aggravated the nastness and un-
| palatahle nature Of the food which was
! available. After some four months OF
siege the only vegetables left were a few
potatoes and timed tomatoes. and the
craving for these was such that they
were sold at l. shillings pound and a
/ sovereign tin. The bulk of the garrison
! simply had no fresh vegetable food at all.
and suffered accordingly. The state OF
! Kimberley was not much better, and il
would be difficult TO point TO single pro-
! tracted siege in recent times in which the
stock of fresh vegetable food had not been
! exhausted long before relief or capituia-
! ton
! Even Colonel Ward, "the test commits
! sara, officer since Moses" could rot lie
expected TO Law in stocks of fresh Vegeta-
! bles. for the simple reason that except
| potatoes and few other tubers, they viii
/ not keep fresh. But modern conditions Of
war, which adds 50 much to the power of
! the defensive force, also make il possible
that in very many positions the garri on
/. should be largely self-sustaining in re-
gard TO vegetable food, and in some degree
| in the supply Of wheat and cats. The idea
is not new for when General Philippin
B~succeeded TO the command Of BadajOz,
though in a cold and bleak country. he m
stantly sowed down all the ground outside
the rampartS so far as ii WAS commanded
by his guns. with spring wheat, on the
chance that he might reap 4 crop which
would take at least five months to eFoH
and ripen.
This was outside the close ranpsrts Of
an old fashioned fortress, with OutwOrFs
distant not more thar a Thousand ysris
But the immense extent Of mode L 70
sitlon, whether improvised. at Lady
smith, or regular fortresses. like Ports
mouth. or Thorn on the North German
frontier, or any modern stronghold. males
it perfectly possible 10 prepare for ener-
gencies by cultivating inside the pro-
tected area a ergulaY siege farm. o.
large dimensions. cropped with such veg
etables and cereals as experience shows 10
be most useful food, mCst Quickly grown
and generally best suited TO sycn emT-
gencies.
Even poor little Ladysmith embraced an
area of nearly eight square miles Cf and
under its defeuccs. OF over 1000 aces.
and, as some matter OF fact per o. "a d, If
even a fyethousandth part OF this i
been sown with mustard and cress it would
have been of service to the defenders. Il
might be objected that the grouad ia. ide
the outlying forts would probably be
needed to move troops qver. But rein
forcing troops go by roads bot &C. oss the
fields, and roads are just a necessary On
farms as elsewhere. The military IoIcs
10 the forts and trenches Ivsuld be supple
mented ia first-class fortress 10y d "a l.
read or tram line cCnnecure the outer de-
weEces. This would still leave a great
space of untrodden ground within. How
this could be used 20 the best advantage /
might be part OF the regular Instructions /
Of officers instructed with siege commits !
sariat.
The return in mere bulk from some or !
dinary farm crop is an indication Of what (
selected seeds and intensive cul,iyat on /
might produce inside the fgntn line. /
Millet, which is grown in Germany and :
Italy. and is the staple food Of India. pro- .
duces five times the weight OF food gwen .
by similar area OF wheat. Field ,eet- /
root has yielded seventy tons an acre
1t is now crossed with the garden beet
a most useful fresh vegetable which Won d /
be. of service at any time for the use Of |
the troops. Potatoes which are very ex- /
pensive 10 grow. also yield an imme nse .
weight per acre, Thousand headei /
kale." though grown for cattle. could cas-
lily be cultivated for human use, and pro
duces a greater weight of good green veg
etables per acre than any plant. 1t also
lourishes throughout the winter Com
mon beans. especially the various "tari-
cot beans, which are neglected in this
country give very large returns to e Oh !
cultivation. The latter are sCwn in Per-
tugal as catch crop" with watermel-
ous, after the corn is reaped. Maize in a |
suitable climate grows fast and Iuxu-
Tiantly, and is food, either green or ripe
for men and cattle.
Siege farming will be managed on differ
ent principles from ordinary agriculture |
and will need special study and special |
seeds and plants. The object of the ordin- |
airy farmer or market gardener is 10 grow
as much as will pay not as much as the |
ground Will carry. He might. by heavy |
and intensive cultivation, in |
crease his crop by half, but if ii cost |
him twice as much to do so he would be
content to grow less at less cost. In the
siege farm, with a limited area TO work |
on. all the crops VIII be grown by inten- |
sive methods. the object being to get the |
heaviest crop per yard regardless of cost.
II will practically be all market garden
or worked on market garden principles |
In hot climates, where irrigation is avail
able. the fortress farm should grow at least
two crops a year.
1t is evident that if a siege is to last |
even few months much may be done by
proper and prompt use of siege gardens
and farms TO make the garrison self-sup-
porting. In any case this simple provision
of useful food would greatly mitigate the
of the defenders in a protracted |
blockade extending through the autumn |