Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-05-02

stand an inch or two apart. The ones
removed may be transplanted to an
other bed. where they will grow unin-
terruptedly If we'll watered when they
are set out. Later, when the leaves
leaves with bits Of rafla- This will
cause the inner leaves of the head to
become completely blanched, crisp,
tender and very pale green.
Beds for radishes do not require much
fertilizing. as soil that is made too
rich produces radishes that are coarse
and rank. Make the soil as fine as pos
stb1e and sow in rows six inches apart,
thinning the plants to stand at least an
inch apart in the rows. Use only the
quick forcing varieties, which mature
in six to eight weeks after planting,
or even less time.
One Of the very best methods of
which the writer knows for preparing
beds for lettuce. radishes. spring on
ions, etc, is that of an old gardener
whose garden is always a thing Of
beauty and productiveness. The
method is as follows: The soil is dug
to the depth of eight or ten inches and
mixed with the proper amount of fer
tilizer and small quantity of sand, II
necessary. The mixture Is well worked
up with hoe, and it is then raked
over until it is almost as fine as dust
Then the mixture Is replaced In the
excavation and the bed rounded UP SO
that its surface stands three or four
inches above the level of tho remain
der OF the garden. The seed is then
cultivation is careful and thorough; a
weed Is never permitted to more than
show its head. and the results are
almost like magic. 1t takes a little
more work, but the appearance and
the productiveness of the garden are
worth 1t.
The finest and tenderest Of spring
onions--to last during the greater part
of the summer and to furnish sets"
sowing onion seed in properly prepared
beds. If the beds are prepared as de-
scrfbed in the paragraph above the re-
suits will be better than II the seed Is
sown in carelessly made beds or rows.
The soil must be made very rich with
old, well rotted manure, and he top
soil must be raked into as fine condi-
ton as possible. Sow the seeds in shall
low drills about six inches apart, COW
ering them with half an inch of fine
carefully between the rows, later re-
sorting to hand wedding. The plants
must be thinned to stand not closer
than an inch apart in the rows, and not
a weed must be permitted to grow In
the beds If the weather is dry, water
the beds two or three times week,
preferably in the evening, soaking the
soil to the depth of a couple of inches.
Onions so grown will be ready for use
as tender, crisp little bulbs within six
weeks, and may be used all summer. If
any remain in the fall they may be
saved for use as sets next spring, as
onions will not make mature, full
grown bulbs in single season unless
the seed is sown just as early in the
spring as the ground can be worked.
A little work among the fruit trees
and berry vines right now will do a
lot toward insuring good crops this
summer. Peaches, plums, cherries. ap-
pies pears and ounces have already
bloomed and set their fruits, two or
three weeks ahead of the usual time.
and prospects at present are excellent
for abundant crops Of all these fruits
As the blooms have practically all
fallen and the fruits are set, the trees
should be given a thorough spraying
with good insecticide spray. to get
rid of the moths. etc, that produce the
grubs that destroy much Of the fruit.
The spray Is also necessary to destroy
the plum curculio. Spraying at this
time is designed to prevent the at
tacks of such pests as penetrate the
fruit and render it worthless by de-
vouring the pulp next the cores or
seeds It will also be well to thin out
the fruits, as trees that are permitted
to bear all the fruits that are set
always produce quantities of small,
faulty fruits, while the overwhelming
weakens the trees and renders them
vulnerable to attacks Of other pests.