The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1914-01-03
WITH THE FARMERS
By Prof. w. F. MASSEY
tomato and pepper plants In spring?
What is the best carly tomato wo can
plant for chipping earlyg

| tomato and pepper plants In spring?
What is the best carly tomato wo can
plant for shipping early?'
The damping OF OF young seedlings
| has always been trouble to garden
ers. IT is caused by minute fungus
! that runs over tho surface OF tho bed
Conditions that favor 1t are sprinkling,
instead of Watering the bed. and thus
! having wet surface and dry bebow.
Close atmosphere and insufficient ven
ti!ation will also promote It. No soil
Is safe from 1t. as 1t is commonly
brought in with the water. Sowing
the seed in rows instead of broadcast,
and Keeping tho surface constantly
stirred will tend to prevent. tho growth
OF the fungus. Flowers of sulphur
Bprinkled between the rows will often
have good effect. Watering the seed
ped few days ago in advance of sowing
| with n nor cent solution of formal
dehydo may sterilize any that are in
tho soil Tho chief things to observe
are not to give water till evidently
needed, and then soak the soil we'll
Then attend TO tho ventilation, and
give the plants all the air the weather
VIII allow. Tho earliest tomato know
OF ID the Langdon strain of Earliana-
| This has always been better than any
| other Earliana in my experience. Bonny
Best comes in close behind it, and is
also good tomato.
Sowing Tomato md Eggplant Seed.
For getting the best and earliest
plants OF tomatoes and elephants.
when should the seed be sown in tho
hot bed?' This will depend on the
climate where ono is working. For
early tomatoes I have found the best
rule is to sow the seed ten weeks be.
1ore 1t is safe in the locality to set
the plants in the open ground Here
aim to set out my tomato plants the
last week In April There is then still
some danger OF frost. as last spring
| we had regular freeze the 18th of
Way But saved my plants by show
ciing tho soil over them the evening
before. With only a light boar frost
have saved the plants by taking q
watering pot before the sun rose and
washing the frost off the plants with
cold water. These are plants that have
been carefully hardened to the air in
the cold frames to which they were
| transplanted from the greenhouse
| SOW seed then the middle of February.
| have Gown them at that time in a
simple cold frame with the double
| glazed sashes over them and they
came along In good time But I usu-
| ally SOW the seed in shallow boxes OF
! SOIL In tho greenhouse. and transplant
! them to other boxes as soon as large
I
/ 10 the cold frame In March, setting
them four inches apart each way, in
oroer TO get stout. short plants that
VIII come up with a mass OF roots
and earth and transplant easily. Be-
fore moving them to-the open ground.
gradually inure them to the open air
oy slipping down the sashes Whenever
inc weather will permit
! EEgplants cannot be hardened of
81 nc arl.-
| as theS are much more tender and any
! eHort TO harden them will merely stunt
Them. SOW eggplant seed In boxes in
! the greenhouse in March, and as soon
as large enough to handle set then,
IN three-inch pots and keep them I'm
| the greenhouse. shifting them to tho
iour-inch size. and growing them TO n
iarse size before planting out the last
or May or first of June. You can grow
them In a hot bed by sowing the seed
70 the frames in April, and keeping
: them growing nicely. But they arc
harder to transplant from the bed than
| III they arc grown in pots
! AS am not growing these things for
market l sow but few extra early to-
rnato seed and SOW some early In April
| or the later sorts in a cold frame
| transplant them and have them ready
| 10 set out the last of May, and these
are The main crop of better fruit than
me extra early ones, and VIII run
! through till frost.
| The Best Dairy Cow.
| am thinking of going more into
| the dairy business. / have some good
Guernsey cows and Guernsey bull. reg
] preed" That will depend on what YOU
I propose TO run dairy for II YOU are
| going TO devote your attention to hut
ter-making, probably the Guernseys
are as good as YOU can get. though 7
! nave never had one that was as deem
n millter as some Jerseys / have had,
| being an old Jersey breeder / may be
little prejudiced. But the Guernseys
seem TO be less delicate than the Jer-
| seys ana not SO high strung and nery-
GUS. II you propose to sell milk you
| 90 not want either Guernseys or Jer-
| seys. The Holsteins are the COWS for
the milk dairy by all means, and their
milk is better food for infants than
mat or the butter breeds, which is too
rich. You want for the milk dairy the
| COW that Will give the most milk that
Will pass muster In the city. and the
Holsteins Will do more of this than
any other breed. But IL you intend to
make butter, and have some Guernseys.
j would say stick to them and test ali
yours cows with a Babcock test an
paying we'll.
Ammonia and Nitrogen.
II am simply a plain farmer, and
am trying to improve, but am often
puzzled In regard to fertilizers. You
men who write for the farm papers
talk about nitrogen, but when I buy
sack of fertilizer sec no mention
OF nitrogen. but of ammonia Now
what is the diffeyencc? Is ammonia
the same as nitrogen?"
| No, ammonia Is not the same az
nitrogen. In fertilizer it is nitrogen
we want. Ammonia is q hydride Of
nitrogen. That is. to get fourteen
pounds of nitrogen you will have to
BUY seventeen pounds OF ammonia
rho fertilizer men write ammonia on
their sacks because this figures look
larger. instead of putting it down
LOO per cent nitrogen. they nut 2 nor