The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1917-06-27
GARDEN AMATEURS
| HAVING THEIR OWN
TROUBLES AT WORK
Many First Time Planters
Show Interest But
Little knowledge

The coming of hot weather, Of va
cation time and baseball, swimming
and other summer diversions have
of Woodcraft Potato Club boys and
girls. but if the work does not pail,
the lads and lasses are having their
troubles. nevertheless. From all quar-
ters come letters to the woodcraft
League headquarters, at 13 West
Twenty-ninth street, New York City,
asking what to do in certain circum-
stances. which are named.
There was the little lad from Mon
mouth County, N. J.. who wanted. to
know what he should do with the po-
tato bugs which tried to monopolize
his vines. He was told to pick them
off and destroy them, preferably by
fir, since it is hard to drown them.
Another boy in Connecticut. wanted
to know how soon he could begin to
dig his potatoes; said he had "peeked
in one hill, but didn't find a single
one" He was told that he must have
patience; that his part was to pillow
and plant and cultivate and keep bugs
away, and that the sun and earth
and Providence would in due time
give him a lot of potatoes, and that
the tops began to dry up and whittier
away.
Mrs. F. G. Brandt of Oakland, Cal.
ifornia, wrote that she knew how to
grow potatoes in her old home in New
Jersey, but was unable to do it in
California, "the soil of which to all
appearance is 80 per cent. small
stones and gravel and ten per cent
slugs and grubs, and the dirt mixed
in forms in great chunks like soft
coal which can't be cracked with an
axe now" AS she says she really
wants to grow her own food stuff If
she could be told how, she was re-
ferred to the state agricuIturist for
specific advice concerning the soil at
Oakland.
Many local amateurs are finding
true the advice given by the Wood
craft Potato Clubs that much city soil
is unfit for planting. and that seed
and time were wasted; yet all over
the five boroughs, thousands of plots
are already bearing the fruitage of
early oil in vegetables which are
ready for the table. 1t is several
weeks too early for potatoes, but
those who planted radishes, lettuce,
some sort of greens" and in favored
places beets, are eating of their own
producing.
In spite of the cold, wet weather.
which destroyed many seeds and
plants, PEGS are in blossom, beans
well advanced, cucumbers are putting
out large leaves and the runners are
showing; potatoes are ready for Gull
tivation, in some cases for the second
blowing or hoeing. The best crop of
all up to date, however, has been
weeds, and the woodcrafters have
learned that pulling weeds is a back
breaking task.
Among the older folk there is much
garden rivalry and every commuter
train and surface and elevated and
subway trains to the suburbs has it's
discussion of crops and fertilizers and
insecticides daily.
One feature of the campaign has
been the number who have written
that they failed for the army or navy
and want to know if there is a chance
to "do their bit'' in farming. These
have all ben referred to the Mayors
committee for farm service. The
Woodcraft League will soon take up
the organization of clubs in the south
for fall crops and in preparation for
early planting next year, and is stimu-
lating the children who are now busy
in the north so that youthful patriot
ism shall not wane, thus endeavoring
to keep the Hoe Behind the Flag"