The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1902-04-08

LXVITT.

Brother johnson, In Charity and
Children, says:
The grass begins TO show signs Of
spring,
And soon the butter milk will
bring
The man or woman who does not
admire the green fields and meadows
when the land is covered over with
q carpet of grass, oats or wheat, has
no love of the beautiful in Nature.
IL does us more good 80 see q solid
green field than anything else in all
the universe. It makes us love the
fields and we hate to leave them. It
cheers the hearts of the farmer and
quickens his step and makes his toll
lighter. Man is not the only animal
that delights TO look at the green
sward; horses, cattle, sheep, goats
and even hogs and chickens seem TO
delight in roaming over the green.
Now is a good time to plant
wATERMELoNs AND CANTALoUPEs.
You need not be afraid TO manure
them too much. The richer the sol
the better. A small handful of ma
nure or fertilizer in the hill is often
the cause of failure in the crop. It
Is a good plan TO manure in the hill
If the land is moderately rich, but If
the land Is thin or poor SOW the
fertilizer in a furroR, so that the
plants will not fail when they begin
TO bear.
The best melons we YER saw on
poor land were planted among cot,
ton. The fertilizer was drilled after
the usual plan for cotton. Is Is not
best to have the hills too high. If
the land 10 inclined 80 be wet, the
beds can be made about 8 TO 10 feet
wide with q water furrow between
the beds or rows which viii help
when heavy rains come during the
growing season.
SELLING MELoNsN TOWN.
IL yO0 G64bC A4OGC AC4O4S @A54 yO0
need for home use carry some nice
ones when you go to town. Be care
full about hauling them, for in warm
weather q bruised melon is not ft TO
eat two hours after being bruised.
If you will be careful TO have them
ripe and cool, it will help greatly in
selling them. We have sold very
inferior melons for good prices when
the Drop was q little short by keep
ing them cool. The best melon is
not fit to eat when warm. e.
TO HAVE THE MELONS CooL AND sALA-
BILE
The best way to have them nice is
TO place a layer of straw 6 TO 10
inches thick in a wagon body or wide
bench about three feet high 80 that
the air can circulate freely under
the bench or wagon then wet the
straw thoroughly with clean water.
Place the melons on this late in the
afternoon 70 that they will have the
benefit of the night air and dew.
Next morning before going to mar,
ket cover we'll with green bushes or
anything that will protect them
from the sun. Melons treated this
way will be nearly as cool as if they
had been stored in a refrigerator
and will please any one who likes a
cool melon.
You see by placing them a few feet
above the ground so that ths heat of
the ground cannot effect them and
having the straw wet, the water
evaporating oools anything very fast.
You know if your clothes are wet
and you stand still where the air can
circulate freely around you that yop
Don get chilly even in the warmest
weather. We should have mentioned
the fact that the melons must not be
under a shelter or be surrounded BY
obstruction of n kind so that Il Q
air cannot circulate freely.
HARRY FARMER.
Columbus Co, " g.