Evening star., 1917-03-14

OF 1ertllxerS ana lime WEeu INC eiouue
is ready for cultivation. Another de-
scribes How Much Vegetable Seed te
Plant for q Family Of Four" and one
that is particularly timely in view OF
the present high price Of potatoes, Is
| How to Grow Irish Potatoes in Vacant
Lots and City Farms" This contain,
this interesting bit Of Information re-
garding the seeding Of tho potato plot
THE cost of seeding, the garden spe'
cialists of the department point out
using q whole potato for planting. the
gardener will cut out fSom the potatoes
| cone-shaped pieces of flesh, each con
| tanning an eye of the potato. In this
| way only from one-fourth to one-ffth
Of the flesh of the potato Will be need
ed to provide seed and the remainder
| of the potato can be cooked for table
USE"
Many inquiries came to The Star office
Yesterday and today about various
| this paper will ask the department to
answer. In some cases the demand
for bulletins has been so heavy that
the present supply is exhausted, and
correspondents must wait for new ones
to be printed. This Will explain any
delay these inquiriers may experience
in getting the Information desired.
Several groups Of youthful gardeners
are taking the initiative in seeking to
obtain the free loan of vacant lots FOR
up Of boys in the block bounded by New
Hampshire avenue, L. N and 21st
streets northwest, and, with an eighth
grade teacher as their sponsor. they are
seeking the use Of lot No. 6. facing
New Hampshire avenue on that block.
They have found. in the assessor 8
Office, that the lot is owned by Rosa
NJ. Cochran. and they have requested
The Star to bring to the attention of
the owner their desire to use tho lot.
William II. Ford writes:
"Win you please inform me who the
owner is Of the vacant lot in front of
409 10th street southeast. / would like
to get into communication with the
owner in regard to using the lot for a
garden. am an experienced gardener"
Land Company Offers Lots.
The Thrift Land Company, incorpo-
rated. with Offices in the Southern
building, writes that it owns several
hundred building lots in the south
east, ana some fifty OF them are splen-
did for truck gardening.
we will gladly donate the free use
Of these lots to parties desiring TO culti-
vate them. and would suggest that a
number of families club together in
getting the land put into seeding con-
dition and then divide it into fndi-
viduaI sections"
To those inquirers in the southeast
for vacant lots The Star refers this
offer They should communicate with
E. NJ. Peterson, treasurer of the com
pany, 221 Southern building.
One question does not come within
the scope of the information to be had
at the Department of Agriculture, so
The Star refers it to readers. John y.
Bayly, Jas North Carolina avenue
southeast states:
II have been making every effort to
secure some good. rich soil suitable for
mixing in with regular backyard dirt.
So far / have been unable to secure
same from any source. and 1 would
thank you to advise me If there is
any place in Washington where l can
purchase same"
Another offer OF vacant lot is
made by II. Randall Webb. who writes:
'It gives me great pleasure to say
that A. lot that I own can be used for
this purpose (gardening). 1t is lot :,
square 81. 1t fronts on 23d street west:
it Is 46 by 13I feet; total, about 6.302
feet, and should be able TO raise fair
size crop.
"On the latest map of this city a ten
foot alley appears on the rear of this
lot, but this is only on paper. Some
eleven years ago the District OF Column
b:a undertook to build an alley through
the square and took ten feet of this
lot for that purpose, at the same time
making me pay S26 for the benefits con-
ferred on my property.
This alley has never been built.
however, and the District has my money
and I have nothing. I understand this
is quite common occurrence and that
should not complain.
II think, therefore. under the cir
cumstances, that the District could not
object to this ten-foot strip being cul-
tivated together with the rest of the
lot"