Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1916-12-21

Merton Alvin Eldridge of Brecken-
ridge, II years of age, raised one of
the best gardens in the county and the
following is his report:
Expenditures.
Cost of preparing seed bed and
working on garden at 10
cents per hour. ............. Sll.OO
Cost of seeds and nlants 2.09
Cost Of cultivation. ........... l.5t
Cost of gathering and market
ing ......-......... z.OO
Total cost Of garden ....... Sl6.59
Receipts.
Cash receipts from fresh pro
ducts sold ..................$ $3.50
Estimated value Of fresh pro-
ducts used in home. ........ 5000
Estimated value of canned pro
ducts used in home ......... l4.SO
Total value Of all products. S57.30
Total cost Of production .... 1859
Net profit on project 1880. S4O.ll
The following is Merton Eldridge's
write-up on his garden:
We have "A small Y. NJ. c. A. group
an our town OF which am a member.
one time last winter Mr. Curtiss, our
secretary, suggested that some Of the
BOYS in this vicinity take hold and
do gardening. Some Of as took up
the idea and went at it because of the
rood il would do us and some for the
trip to Lansing.
/ think that the purpose of the boys
and girls gardening club is to get the
bows in the towns and city away from
asking Dad" for nickel, but to earn
II himself and TO keep him away from
The dusty streets, and TO take some
interest i'm agriculture. The product
which | had the most success with, rs
the growing of the nutmeg pie pump
kin. II is one Of the best varieties
known. grew one plant this year
called celery cabbage" which | had
never heard of before. 1t started out
like a small cabbage plant and soon
the leaves grew on it and it began TO
look like cabbage. only about a foot
tall and six inches around. The cen
ter was like the heart Of celery and
the outside like lettuce.
The year was not very good, but /
tried. | was called IN our town the
star pumpkin grower. for off from
four rows of corn one hundred and
thirty feet long, | planted a pump
kin seed TO every other hill and of
from the lot | received about 300
pumpkins. They were all the small
nutmeg pie pumpkins and are very
good for pies, each of them making
from one to three pies.
In the spring, had much trouble
with bugs on my squash, pumpkins
and melon vines tried nearly every
thing until finally gentleman told
me to take hen manure and water and
sprinkle them with this which | found
worked very well. Ny cabbage were
completely alive with bugs and to
remedy this | used Stake lime and had
to put it on for two weeks about three
times a week.
Ny cabbage crop is said by nearly
everyone in this community about the
best around. | do not say this to
boast. but because | think it is the
best | have seen around this vicinity
The place where my garden is. is a
fine setting. II is drained by sew
erage from my fathers creamery and
has a hog yard on one side and Gem
etery at one end.
grew row of celery, about two
rods and half long, and it certainly
yielded great crop First, when the
plants were small, piled the dirt uT
to the sides Of il, then when it hac
grown out of this, | put boards uf
around it and il grew right out of the
boards and then | put tiles over them
| BY using this method the celery ear
be trained to be extremely long, fol
mine looked much longer than ordi
nary celery These plants were tall
very strong and we'll bleached
To decorate my garden, used ma
moth sunfowers, which made it lool
very attractive
had quite bit of trouble abou
getting my cabbage started as ! ha'
to set and reset them again.
| did not can anything out of m.
garden as do not take any interes
in that kind of work. My mothe
canned a large quantity of vegetable
and pickles off of it, and we did no
have to buy any vegetables all sum
mer.
| had watermelons and muskmel
ons, but had some trouble in keepini
them on the vines, for some foreign
ers stole a great quantity when the
were still green.
This garden was 1873 by 66 feet, an
had eighteen different vegetables j
} IL