The Birmingham age-herald., 1922-05-21

If the private home gardener
 would only take lessons from the
 professional Italian trucker. there
 would be no need of his kicking about
 the high prices of vegetables that are l sure to obtain in the late summer 1 and fall months. One of the weak 1 est attributes of the average Amert-
 can Is perseverance, and it could be no better exemplified than
 management of the garden. In the beginning. ambition Is a, .s. 1 pitch centered often In his determin-
 ation 10 grow the biggest tomatoes ] in his neighborhood, or-l. ma
 fined to the longest head of lettuce,
 or the most expansive squash, .lna l again, pride may possess him to have the best all-around garden in the city. 1 But will this ambition iive7 Among | some it will, but too many. ate, ,.' seots, diseases and dry, hot weather make their appearance, will become
 discouraged and easily find satis- ] factory excuses to themselves to abandon the one time cherished gar den to its fate.
 l Not so the Italian gardener, who continues to toll and plant. resolving
 that nature has it's compensations no less than it's difficulties.
  sible through successive plantinEs 'n : are generally more profitable than early ones.
 Insect Control By Crop Rotation Insects and disease always take up their abode near their natural or
 favorite food, Just as criminal chooses his environment among those who offer the greatest security. Crime may be controlled by breaking
 up the abiding place of criminals. just so insects may be abated oy changing their environment through removing their natural food supply.
 These are rational aad practical remedies, easily visualized by anyone, yet the practice is not so frequently resorted to as 1t should be. It is common sense to observe that if your soil, through repeated cropping % the same plant, becomes infested ypth 8 disease or insect peculiar tQ that plant. that correct measures con trol become difficult owing to the
 abundance of the pest. The sensible thing to do is to change the crop and thereby starve out the undesirable pests, that have made your crops un-
 profitable. Such a method of farm
 ing is called crop rotation and is of
 supreme importance in any compre-
 hensive scheme of disease and insec. control. The entire insect problem is fast resolving itself into actual real
 ization of the doctrine, Survival of the fittest.
 Give Poor Lands . Rest The late wet cold spring. in some
 sections, has caused a considerable
 decrease in the oat acreage. which
 will no doubt lead to a considerable increase in corn, but there appears
 to be no material increase in early planted corn crops. The main in- crease will arise from May and June plantings We do not wish to dis courage an increase to corn where
 the land is such as will produce un-
 der ordinary conditions, 25 bushels or more to the acre. but to point out
 the folly of planting corn on very thin land. as Is so often the case. Consider the fact that poor land, like humus, can be overtaxed and
 must have the needed rest If it is
 to serve good purpose in the flu ture.
 Resting land does not mean that it should be turned out to grow up in
 weeds, be washed into gullies, but it
 means to change to some crop that will put back into the soil some of theFsplant food that previous crops
 have robbed 1t of As money crop. tne IeTtilzinB pants, Sucn as coW peas, soy beans and velvet beans on poor land, will beat corn all to pieces.
 Questions and Answers I c. Is it too late to plant the moon vine for a shade? Mrs. D.. R. F. D.. East Lake.
 A. It's rather late to plant the seed but you can secure plants and this would be the proper thing to do. c. am late with my garden, but want to plant something for fall
 use What would you suggest? Mrs, E.. Haleyville. Ala
 A. You can. of course, still plant most any of the spring and summer vegetables, but it is getting time to begin the planting of many fall vegetables. such as carrots. pars- nips. salsify. parsley collards. savoy cabbage and rutabaga.
 c. In setting out the tall saivia and coleus plants bought at the seed
 store, would you advise cutting off the tops? Mrs. U.
 A. When such plants are too tall. Its best to remove a good portion
 of the top before setting out. and
 ~uch cuttings are easily rooted in