The courier-index., 1918-03-01
Plan Of Garden viii Enable You to
Utilize Space to Better
Advantage.
BY ]. S. Knox, Horticulturist.

voted to home gardens in 1917 was
from 200 to 800 per cent greater than
the average year. This increased
acreage was doubtless due to the fact
that almost as soon as war was de-
clared against Germany last spring
there went out a request from the
Washington Office that the home gar
den be given especial attention. There
is no easier or better way to get an
abundance of fresh vegetables than
to grew them on our own soils. We
have again been asked during 1918
TO grow all of the vegetables we
can in the home garden during 1918.
The prospects for shortage OIL
cars to haul foodstuffs or even short
age of the food itself during 1918 are
greater than they were last year.
The South has been asked to grow its
own supply of food during the war.
and this we can easily do. There are
few OF our states that can feed their
population more easily than can Ark
ansas. We have the soil. climate, and
rainfall. and can grow almost any
vegetable that will grow elsewhere.
Must Have a Garden Plan.
Few OF us appreciate fully the value
of garden plan. A plan OF the gar
den will enable you to utilize the
space in the garden to better advan-
tage, and consequently give you
greater amount of vegetables from a
given area A garden planting pro-
gram telling what variety Of the diff
ferent vegetables to plant and when
to plant them can be had free OF
| charge by writing TO the Extension
Division, Old Statehouse. Little Rock.
Ark
Companion Cropping Is an Advantage.
1t is to our advantage where the
space for gardening is limited to prac-
tice what is known as companion crop
ping That is, of growing one crop
between the rows of another For in
stance, turnips, radishes. or lettuce
can be grown between longer season
crops, such as potatoes, etc, and may
be set between these rows. Some of
the market gardeners around large
cities often have two or even three
crops on the land at the same time.
Succession Cropping Produces
Results.
Another. system Of cropping the
home. garden. and this is where most
of our Southern gardeners fail. is the
system known as succession cropping.
That il we plant a NUMBER of short
soil for only few weeks. All of
these should be grouped as nearly to-
gether as possible. so that after their
period OF usefulness we can take
them out and plant something else in
their place. Radishes. lettuce. peas
and similar early maturing crops may
be followed by tomatoes. pepper. egg
plant, sweet corn, or second plant
ing of beans, squashes or cucumbers.
or whatever vegetables you may pre-
fer.
Fertilizer and Good Soil Increase
Quality and Yield.
Remember that no vegetable will
thrive on poor soil and have the
quality that it would have IL it
were grown on fertile soil with
plenty of available moisture Well
rotted stable manure is possibly the
best fertilizer that we could use. but
since many of the gardeners cannot
secure supply of this fertilizer 1t
mercial fertilizers. Potash is too high
in price for us to use it literally, but
we can apply equal parts of cotton
seed meal and acid phosphate at the
rate of 1000 to 1900 pounds per acre
and ordinarily get fairly good results.
If this amount is used it would
be best to broadcast most OF it and
harrow into the soil, saving enough
10 apply 500 to 400 pounds in the
row. mixing it with the soil before
sowing the seed or setting the plants.
Care Is Necessary.
Keep the surface of the garden soil
well stirred. 1t is much easier to
combat grasses and weeds by keeping
after them than it is to delay the
cultivation until these things get a
hold on the soil II will require only
few minutes each week to take a
horse and harrow and clean the
weeds out OF the garden. The ends
of the garden fence can be made ot
woven wire or poultry wire and put up
in sections so ii can be taken down
while cultivating the garden. Grass
and weeds use plant food that the
vegetables need for their growth.
Keep them out.
Write 10 Division of Puhlic atoms.
Washington, ID. c., for Farmers Bull