The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1917-03-13
More Interest In This Subject This
Year Than In Government Bonds,
Duo to High Price Of
Vegetables.
1T IS TIME TO GET BUSY
Keep Ahead Of Weeds 10 the Advice
Offered to Amateur Who Would
Make Good With Small
Plots.

There is more interest in home gar
dening just now than there has been
in many years. And therefore the fol-
| lowing Home Gardening Hints from
the state college at Ames will prove
more interesting and valuable than at
any prior time:
+! Say that you. ihe thousands OF 9TH
or folks. are planning back yard gar
den this spring. You are looking for
some sound advice on how to go about
making It. Here it is, briefly told by
the agricultural extension department
at Iowa State college.
Measure your space; make plan
OF your garden showing where and
how much Of each vegetable you will
plant. In getting seeds and plants,
deal only with reliable seedsmen.
The ground must be well drained
and should be sandy enough to be nice
and mellow. Be sure nothing shades
the garden. Dig down and be sure no
roots underlie it. Don't try to grow
garden on poor soil. Have good dirt
at least foot deep. Remove all trash,
sticks and rake the place clean. Cover
the plot with an inch or SO of we'll rot
ted manure and turn it under in plow-
ing. If 1t rains, do not let the surface
get hard. Keep it raked or hoed even
before planting and, Of course, after
wards. If you have some we'll rotted,
fine manure, 1t will pay to scatter
about three bushels to the square rod
over the surface and rake it in. Don't
have raised beds unless you have to
put your garden on wet ground.
Don't plant too many things; select
those which you like or which you can
SELL You can start tomatoes, early
|cabbage and other plants in the house,
EGive the plants plenty Of air and get
them used to the wind and cold grad
ually. Keep the roots covered, when
setting the plant. dig little hole.
pour in little water. place the plant
lpack some dirt around the roots and
pour in more water; when 1t has
. soaked away, fill up the hole with
|dirt. leaving the surface smooth and
mellow.
| Put crops like carrots and parsnips
THAT require all season to grow, IN a
|part of the garden by themselves; also
1.-The early lettuce, radishes. early tur-
|nips and early beans by themselves so
second crops may be conveniently
Iplanted.
Plant more than enough seed and
then thin. Keep ahead Of the weeds.
Timely Hints to the Gardener.
BY all means order your seeds If you
haven't done so already.
There should be plenty Of good. well
decomposed manure on the land ready
to be plowed under as soon as the
ground is thawed.
Remem Der that crop rotation is i'm
portant in vegetable growing.
A good woven wire fence may save
big loss from pigs and chickens
little later on.
All deep rooted plants should be
planted in soil that is mellow and
plowed deeply.
! Cold frames can be used to advant-
age in producing tomato and cabbage
plants.
Celery will stand much heavier
soil than most vegetables
Shingles, rhubarb leaves or even
newspapers will make a good shade
for newly transplanted plants.
How Big.
! For average home gardens Of two
different sizes. the agricultural extern
sion department at Iowa State college
has prepared plans giving tho best
suited vegetables to grow and IN what
place they had best be grown.
| GARDEN ONE ROD SQUARE.
| Divide this into eleven rows the
width Of the plot.
Row 1-One inch wide, early rad
ishes, later early cabbage.
Row eighteen inches wide, let
tuce, followed by seven tomato plants.
Row 3-Eighteen inches wide, onion
sets, followed by seven tomato plants.
| Row 4-Thirty inches wide, two
rows dwarf peas twelve inches apart.
followed by turnips
| Row 5-Thirty inches wide. two
rows beans twelve inches apart, fol-
lowed by late cabbage.
Roy eighteen inches wide, beets.
| Row Thirty inches wide, cucum-
bers, four hills, with late radishes and
late beans between them.
Row 8-Thirty inches wide, nastur-
tiums.
Row s-Twelve inches. vacant,
GARDEN 24x24 FEET.
Plant az above. making rows full
length, and add:
Row s-Thirty-three inches wide.
sweet corn and squash.
Row 1O-Thirty-siX inches wide,
sweet corn and squash.
Row 21-Twenty-one inches wide,
parsley. satisfy and squash.
Row I2-Twelve inches wide, va,
cant.