Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1909-08-12
THE INTENSIVE GARDEN.
Lessons From Small Plots Cultivated
by French and BcIgians.

IF we would live by gardening we
must study the ways Of gardening. II
WIS a shrewd old English farmer who
used to say to his sons PUT the horse
to. and let us drive round and soc what
other people are after"
The French market gardeners about
Paris are the most skilful growers in
the word-except the Chinesc--and the
average garden OF an acre or two "till-
cd to the eyebrows" as they say, shows
the following returns. given by our con-
suls and business mon interested in the
matter:
There are of course exceptions. where
the total income from one acre is Sc 900
n year. but as a usual thing the gardens
yield but $500 to the acre. and tho aver
age annual profit Of the gardener is not
over q thousand dollars"
How many ministers and college pro-
fcssors and literary and small shopk oep-
ers artists and literary folk are there
making n healthy living and putting a
! thousand dol!nrs year in the bank be-
sides?
The common French gardener makes
this by intensive gardening. True, he
begins with certain advantages. For
generations before him his family have
been gardeners. and the instinct for the
best methods run In the blood Within
ten mile circuit Of Paris are 2.CO)
| market gardens. models of care and Gull
ture. some of which have been held by
the same families for 200 years. These
| gardens are not large: the largest is
said to be not moro than four acres. and
not the smallest profits are taken from
| plots of quarter acre, titled with the
| finest care.
| Their very name, the marais gardens,
| comes from the marats or marshes of
| the Seine. which were drained four gen
| cratiOns ago to get ut their rich black
soil. These plots are tucked away in
angles Of the old Notifications. or back
| cd by the city walls which protect them
from north and east winds. Or elise
| the garden has it's own walls eight to
| fifteen feet high on the north and east
| sides, giving a climate of its own.
| Old gardens dating from Louis Phil
| ippes time ana before have hollow
brick walls with heated f'ues to force
| winter fruit on trees trained agains,
| them. A border two and a half feet
| wide along these walls Will yield NOR,
| fruit of the finest quality than we com
monty take from half an acre Of or
chard. In winter lean to or spanroo
shelters OF glazed sash protect the blacl
Hamburg ard chasselas grapes. or the
peaches. red and perfumed, which
weigh ten olrces apiece. BY May these
glass houses chn be taken down and
the trees east and'ngrow strong In thu
open air ALI, siirrfer
The skilled French or Belgian garden
or takes fouf.'to sevril crops In a season
from. the same dead rich esoil. There i
no magic in 1t. The mnraicher. or marsh
gardener. turns over the old mushroom
beds Of the season before. forks then
up roughly so that the air works anon,
the cods freely to carry off the acri,
gases of decomposition-"to sweeten III
soil" az he SAYS IN few days It grow
; powdc-y and is beaten and raked to
level and three 10 nine inches OF fin
soil. not too fine. are s:fted over It t.
ms the seed bed.
Then radish seed. turnips or carrot
of the small, tender, quick growing sort
are thinly sown and pressed gently int
the earth on this same bed twenty-nv
lettuce plants with leaves the size OF
half dollar are set out. very likely wit
four or five "auliflowers under the sam
| glass In the rich warm soil. with pient
Of water. the plants have nothing to d
but to grow as fast as possible and ge
ont of each others way in succession.
| The radshes are fit 10 pull in thrc
/ weeks. the ,urnips and carrots In five t
: six weeks the lettuce being headed an
; cut fortnight before. Then tho caui
5 flowers have room to spread, with
q melon vine or cucumber in the middl
: 10 riot over the whole three BY fou
= feet enclosed. when the caulflower head
@ are set out again In the open field.
; Youths Conn antol