The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1907-04-14
TRUCK FARMING
IN WESTERN
FLORIDA
Sandy Loan Makes Richest
Tomato Growing
Land.
A gardener. in west Florida writing

A gardener. in West Florida writing
to the Southern RuralIst, says:
Some time ago l asked for your adj
vice in planting cabbage. | started
my bed as soon as / received your
letter, and now l nave over 5000
hardy plants set out IN field When
i planted the seed the last OF Novem-
Der, / was figuring on keeping them
in the cold frame untff aas,lSth~od
February, but the Warm We5eer dur
ing the first half of January made
them grow so fast that l set the lara-
est plants in field January 18th. They
were good stocky plants about D
inches high.
I'm setting the cabbage where l had
velvet beans last year. Abouc SIX
weeks ago | went into the bean patch
with finch pillow and a rolling coul-
ter. with two horses, and plowed about
8 inches deep, and you just ought
to have seen what nice work 1T did.
The coulter cut all the vines and
grass in short pieces. and the pioW
covered them completely. In three
weeks | went in with the same plow
and coulter, and went across the field
about two inches deeper. Then / took
my fiYe-tooth cultiYator and went botn
ways over the field. Then l had IL
almost like a seed bed.
/ laid my rows off three feet apart
with 6-inch shovel going twice 20 the
row, and put my fertilizer in the fur
row at rate of 1900 pounds to the
acre, taking a four-inch shovel TO run
In bottom and mix it well. / then took
u medium sized turn pillow and made
a small list, knocked il down with
- H., no
my cabbage plants set on it about Is
inches apart Jersey Wakefield}.
/ will cultivate them about once a
week with my 5-tooth cultivato:, as
i know my land is well broken, and
it's not necessary to go deep. After
they get started to growing l will put
about $50 pounds nitrate of soda per
acre along side of them and harrow
IL in. When they start TO head I'll
give them another light top dressing
of nitrate of soda.
Ought to See Them.
You ought to see my tomatoes. l
planted them December 9th in the
center of the piece of ground 1 will
set them out on, so they would be
handy My bed is 20 inches by feet
and they are as thick as the hair on
a dog. and about four inches high now.
Then I broadcast stable and chicken
house fertilizer about four inches
deep. Took my cultivator and worked
IL in. Then l put another layer and
did the same way. / put three layers
on and worked it all in with cultiva-
tor. Planted my seed in rows about
three inches apart, pressed the ground
with board, and now you can scarce
ly see the ground | built me Il frame
out of 12-inch plank around them,
making the end plank about three
inches higher in the center, sloping
both ways. Put a 1X4 straight across
the center to hold the cover up and
make the water run both ways. Then
j made a canvas cover out of II OF.
stuff, tackled to one side. | have some
half dozen wires stretched and tackled
cross ways SO that when / pull my
canvas over it viii keep up off the
tomatoes, and have wire nails about
one foot apart driven about half an
inch through on the side and fasTen
1t down. So when / want my plants
covered at night, all l have to do is
to pull it over them and hook il on
the nails.
-One week ago to-day the ground was
frozen hard on my bed on the outside
but the plants were all o. X and I'm
quite sure l can carry them through
with my canvas cover, | did last win
ter About the 10th of February /
took my plants out of this frame and
set them in others just like it Cx6
inches and will let them stay till dam
ger o: frost has passed, about March
10th. Then / will take up with a
trowel by cutting out a square piece
of dirt with them. lay my rows off
4 inches apart with a big shovel, mix
mg fertilizer we'll in that furrow,
have my stakes driven three inches
apart in bottom of furrow. then set
the plants with dirt on them in fur
row close to the stake. tie them as
put them out TO stake, take pillow
with small shovel and run around
them and my plants are in the field
and won't be likely to ever wilt.
My tomato land is rich sandy land
l had it in melons last year. After the
melons were gathered | ~fTand
for hay, but the September storm
blew the hay down SO bad | could not
NOW it, SO just before Xmas | went
IN it with my finch steer beam ana
rolling coulter and turned under the
weeds. Last week l went back over
Il, with the same pillow, going about
fe inches deep. I'll let it stand now
till just before l get ready to set my
plants, and then turn it one more
time with small pillow and lay OFF the
rows fat. My tomato plants are Red
field Beauty and Il few Sparks Early.
l shall cultivate the tomatoes together
with a 5-tOoth cultivatOr and a small
sweep about every week. and shall
use some nitrate of soda just before
they start to ripenins.
Why
have a torpid liver when Herbine
the only liver regulator will help