The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-10-20


scientific colleges and experiment de-
pGrtments of the States and National
Government, and it is estimated that
the yield per acre to-day has been
more than doubled through the i'm
lroYement of plants and seeds by selec-
tion and careful cultivation. But
movement more interesting in it's re-
suits than either of these is that de-
voted to the production of plants I'M
der cover. Hothouse plants have long
been raised, and the glass-covered
farms have steadily increased in size
and numbers in the past ten years. 1t
has many times been predicted that
most of the market gardens of the
near future will be entirely covered
with glass, and that while the products
Of the Southern farms in winter may
supply the tables of the poor with their
fruits and vegetables, the nearby
glass-coyered market gardens will fur
nish the middle and upper classes with
fresh goods all through the cold
weather.
Notifications of the dollhouse or
greenhouse are the cold frames which
prolong the growing season late into
autumn and cut off a good slice of
spring. By means of the cold frames
or glass-coyered beds, with no heat
supplied other than that derived from
the sun and the warmth of the earth.
and fertilizer used, seeds of hardy
plants can be started in March. and
lettuce, radishes and many similar
plants can be kept growing until the
first snowstorm of early winter. There
are thousands of acres of land covered
with these glass sashes, and every sea-
son hundreds of tons of fresh vege-
tables come from under them to sup
ply city tables.
A good many cultivated plants re-
quire very little protection to help them
to endure the cold of spring and fall.
The early and late frosts which do so
much damage to crops Will often ruin
market gardeners profits for the sea-
son. In order to limit this chance of
loss as much as possible all sorts of
methods have been resorted to. In
California and Florida, where the fruit
crop is so important, the growers tried
smudges of smoke for many years to
prevent injury by cold waves; but this
was only partly successful. Then the
experiment of covering the crops tenn
porarily. with canvas was made, and
this has now become the most com
mon method of warding off frosts.
The canvas tents used for this pur-
pose, especially in the orange and olive
groves, are constructed so that they
can be put up and removed on short
notice. Regular wagons with all the
paraphernalia necessary to erect the
poles and tents are owned by the large
orange growers. Some of the tents are
put up and kept in the orchard until
the fruit is ripe. The sides and tops of
the tents are opened in the daytime.
but they stand ready for instant use
should a cold wave approach. 1t is
estimated that tens of thousands of
boxes of oranges have been saved in
California and Florida in the last few
years by the use of canvas used in
this or similar way.
EXPERIMENTS IN CONNECTICUT.
The next move to raise crops under
canvas was made in Connecticut. Up
in the tobacco growing regions of the
Nutmeg State nearly all kinds of good
tobacco could be raised except the fine
Sumatra wrapping leaf tobacco. For
one reason and another this always
proved a failure, and the importations
of Sumatra leaf continued on a large
scale. The finest Sumatra leaf seeds
were brought to this country and
planted in Connecticut, but they would
not produce. plants with leaves any
thing like those raised under the Equa-
tor on the other side of the globe.
Some scientists from the, Department
of Agriculture had theory that if
the season for growing was prolonged,
and the proper degree of warmth and
moisture could be obtained, there was
no good reason why Connecticut soil
should not produce Sumatra leaf as
fine as any other country.
A small tobacco farm was covered
with fine canvas and the Sumatra seed
planted under it, By regulating the
moisture and temperature in this way.
it was found that Connecticut Sumatra
wrapping leaf tobacco could be raised
equal to any imported. Even the deli
cately shaded spots. which were al
ways the distinguishing marks of Su-
matra leaf, can be produced on the
Connecticut tent-raised leaves. So Inn
portant has this discovery proved that
a new industry in raising Sumatra
wrappers has grown up in Connecticut.
1t is to help, them in this fight that
eanvas-covered farms have been estab-
hshed. An ordinary garden covered
with plain, unbleached muslin or thick
canvas represents an investment of
less than $50 an acre. The canvas is
made to roll up and down. so that 1t
can be spread over the crops when
needed. In the early season of the
year it is an excellent protection from
the frost and cold waves. and in the
fall 1t serves the same excellent pur-
pose. 1t protects the tender plants
from all damage, and gives them a
start fully two or three weeks earlier
than IL not thus protected. In the sum-
mer time the canvas cover proves eff