The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1916-10-15

vate and lack of cultivation is the
crime of modern farming, especially
in Florida, and she added "air and
sunshine are needed to fertilize, air
consists essentially of oxygen 20 per
cent and nitrogen 70 per cent with
about 1-2 per cent of carbonic acid
and always trace of water.
You see the air contains a large
percentage of that most expensive
element of fertility, nitrogen, air also
contains oxygen; admit the oxygen
to the soil and it proceeds to break
down the old combinations and to
form new ones, it will even attack
the rock particles of which the soil
consists and will aid in tearing them
apart and in making them soluble.
Air, rain and sunshine can be made
to produce plant food from the raw
elements of the soil, the Liberation of
the plant food goes on so long as
fresh supplies of air are introduced
into the soil.
Providence or nature are often
blamed for crops reduced or shorten
ed by drouth, but not always justly,
for the blame often lies with those
who fail to keep up the moisture
holding vegetable matter in their
soil, and who fail to cultivate so as
to get all the properties of plant food
from sun, rain and air"
Martha was in love with her work,
farming was to her an ideal profess
sion for she declared that it was
nothing less than a learned profess
sion, 1T takes brains, thought and
energy to succeed as a farmer and in
the perfect climate and beautiful
scenery one should love working in
the SOIL / do not see how anyone
can dislike work. The right kind of
work, well done rounds out our exis-
tence. This scroll has been found in
The tomb of an old Egyptian. Love
| of work he has to do brings a man
nearer to the gods. Is there nobler
occupation that the art of growing
perfect fruit, and vegetables without
flaw? This work gives our crea-
tive. Some where saw these words,
they are so full of meaning that they
are worthy of place among the
noted classics. ITO pillow is to pray,
to plant is to prophecy and the reap
ing is the answer and fulfillment
thereof. "But if we expect to have
our prayers answered and our proph-
ecy fulfilled we must know what and
when to plant"
] People have been lured to this land
of flowers and after living here a
| short time came to the conclusion
| that it was nothing but fools par
adise, and abandoned farms have
been the result.
Martha said the reason for this
was because we had nothing we
could produce as evidence that with
| intelligent effort this part of Florida
could be made an Eden.
She said, "Why should those with
an abundance of money be the only
ones to have rare fruit when we car
| raise it ourselves2 Why shoulc
| strawberries in March, April anc
May be considered luxury when by
a little care and work we can have
them? How much nicer it is tx
gather them wet and cool with the
morning dew, and gather them by the
bucketfull, how much nicer this is
| than to buy them by the box, often
dry and shriveled or beginning to de-
cay, with layer of large ones on top
and the rest very much smaller.
Making study on fruit growing
in this sandy land Martha found that
an orchard could be so planted thai
one kind of fruit followed another
from early April until November, tht
large, luscious Japanese persimmon
ending the list. That leaves but &
short time without fresh fruit, anc
with fruit closets filled with canned
fruit, jelly, preserves and pickles, al
home grown Martha could see no rea
son for complaining, and she founc
it the same or better with vegetables
She had Irish potatoes, English peas
| celery, lettuce, radishes, beets ant
cabbage in April and each month
brought its own product, and she hac
something fresh and green ever!
month in the year.
| She was told that English peas ant
sweet corn would not grow here bu
she found that both grew well il
Florida if planted at the right TIM
and cultivated properly. She plante'
English peas in time to mature befor'
| hot weather. She picked the last o
them the 2Sth of April and immed-
lately spaded the vines under ant
planted the bed to sweet peppers
She raised second crop of peas lat
in the fall and succeeded admirabl.
, with them.
AS time passed Martha did not tir