Evening star., 1946-12-29
Gardening in the Capital Area
Conservative Paintings With Eye to Needs
Will Insure Success With 1947 Vegetables
Bv Wilbur H. Younomon

Gardening in 1947 is to be on
somewhat different basis than that
of the past four or five years. we
have been growing gardens as a
means of increasing the Nations
food supply, thereby releasing food
for our armed forces and for our
Allies. Some of us gardened TO
make certain that we would have
enough to eat, but those days are
past. In the year l947 we are
going to grow gardens to help make
ends meet, to satisfy our desires
for fresh vegetables and even just
because we enjoy gardening.
The United States Department OF
Agriculture in announcing their
plans for food production 1947 asks
for lust as many gardens as IN
1e46 and for about the same rea-
sons. However they ask us to grow
better gardens, to grow those kinds
of vegetables which we enjoy ano
to leave space for some flowers.
These factors are included in the
recommendations adopted at the
National Garden Conference, a
meeting at which representatives Oh
horticultural organizations ano
MANY other groups met and dis
cussed the needs for gardening ano
the ways in which to best meet
these needs.
TO the home gardener these ma.
tional plans and goals are a bl'
unnecessary. He can see the al
vantages of growing garden Wner
he notes the prices OF fresh vege'
tables in the stores, and realizes
what the current level OF higf
prices is doing to his pay check. He
will grow all that he can and hope
to have enough to can for nex'
winters use.
Better Diet Is Made Possible.
Beyond the saving in expenses
home production of fresh vegetables
means a better-balanced diet. Fresr
vegetables contain many more units
of vitamins and health protecting
minerals than do those which are
shipped from distant areas. This
deficiency might be overlooked Il
we had not learned the flavor o1
freshly gathered garden-fresh Vege'
tables.
There are two ways Of going about
planning the 1e47 garden. Both
have their advantages and disad-
yantages. The usual procedure Is
to lay out the garden and to as
sign various spaces or rows to the
desired crops. Due attention Is
given to the succession Of crops and
to the number of rows in relation to
the quantity it is desired to harvest
This method is most successful IN
the utilization of the garden area. or
perhaps it is better to say that II is
adapted to the size Of the plot avail
able.
| A second approach is to set up a
food budget or goal. This plan calls
for an approximation OF the num-
ber of pounds or other measure OF
the vegetables needed for the table
and for preserving. Having this as
a. base from which to work 1t Is a
simple matter to convert 1t to feet
of row.
Generally speaking, our early
season plans are never fully realized
but having a goal to work towards
obviates many mistakes and aids IN
making the best of what we have.
When spring planting time comes
the urge to garden frequently over
comes our careful plans and we end
up with 80 feet of radishes and an
equal sized area in peas, when every
one knows that 5-foot row OF
radishes is more than can be used
before the radishes become hot
and pithy.
A 30-foot row of peas will pro-