Complete Text (Part 13)

Transplant with care, with a ball of earth at the roots. MELON. See under Muskmelon and Watermelon, MELON PEACH is cultivated the same as Muskmelon. MELON, PRESERVING. Watermelon. MERCDRY. Perennial. See Gooset'oot MINT (Mentha), in three varieties — Spearmint (or Green Mint), Pepper- mint, and Japanese Mint — is frequently grown in kitchen -gardens, in use in the order named, the Jap- anese mint being something of a curiosity. The culture of all is the same; Spear- mint is used chiefly for -U 162 THE BOOK OF VEGETABLES mint sauce and juleps; Peppermint is used for medi- cine and confectionery, and seldom for seasoning. Cat- mint is Catnip. Soil. — Any good garden soil, preferably moist. Distances. — Mint is usually grown in beds, the plants allowed to spread at will. Best results come from drills eighteen inches or more apart, with clean culture between the rows. Depth. — About one inch. Sow seed in spring, where the plants are to stand; or sow in seed-bed, well watered, rows one foot apart ; thin to three inches in the rows. Transplant in fall or spring. Propagation by root-cuttings is most usual, the roots divided in spring and set where they are to grow. Set the divisions two inches deep. Cuttings may also be used, taken in summer, shaded, and watered till established. Protection is not necessary. Cut the leaves as wanted, when the plants are well established. Store in a dry place. Or Lift plants for winter use in the house, keeping in a sunny place in a temperature of about 60°. MUG WORT {Artemisia vulgaris) is a hardy peren- nial plant, the leaves used for seasoning, being aromatic and bitter. It is grown from seed, cuttings, or roots. MUGWORT— MUSKMELON 163 Soil. — Any good earth. Distances. — Twelve by eighteen inches. Depth of seed, one inch; of root-divisions or rooted cuttings, as before. Sow when the ground is fit, in seed-bed, or where the plants are to stand. Thin or transplant to permanent distances. Set roots in spring or autumn. Take cuttings in summer, and water till established. Cut the leaves as wanted, after the plant is well established. Renew or root-prune every few years. MUSKMELON (Cucumis Melo) is grown in several varieties for its fruits. It is a warm-season plant, ten- der to frost, and for an early crop must be started under glass, by which means two crops may be had in a season, and are often planted on the same ground, the later between the earlier. The common varieties are chiefly the cantaloup (with hard and warty, scaly, or furrowed rind) and the nutmeg or netted musk- melon (with softer or netted rind); the latter has the shorter season and is therefore better adapted to grow- ing in the North. Besides these, there are the winter or long-keeping types, forcing melons, and preserving melons, all of which are grown in the same manner, whether out-of-doors or under glass. Diseases and pests are mostly the same as cucumber. Melons 164 THE BOOK OF VEGETABLES planted with cucumbers do not hybridize, as is popu- larly .supposed. Soil should be light, warm, and quick. In heavier soils the hills should be well enriched with compost; if clayey, sand or sifted coal-ashes should be worked in. If wet, the soil should be drained. As muskmelons are always grown in hills, the richer these are made, on whatever soil, the better. On some soils it is even advisable to remove the earth of the hills about two feet across, and replace it with compost. Or fill the holes with well-rotted manure, covered with three or four inches of good soil, in which to sow the seed. Distances are somewhat according to soils. The best general distances are four by six feet; if the soil is very rich, give more space; if poor, give less. Depth.— One-half to one inch. Sow under glass in April, in pots or baskets or on MUSKMELON 165 inverted sods, as melons transplant poorly. Several seeds to each receptacle, thin to one. Sow outdoors when danger of frosts is over, seldom before the first of June. Sow six to twelve seeds to a hill, according to the danger from insects; and, when the plants are well growing, Thin to three in a hill. Set out house-grown plants when frosts are past. The seed of the main crop may be sown between them. Culture. — Preserve the surface mulch until the plants cover the ground. For best fruits, after four have set on a vine, pinch off all sub- Fi 7 ~ ~ sequent blossoms. Muskmeion. Fertilize with one light dressing of liquid manure or of nitrate of soda, when the plants are small. Pinch off the ends of the vines when about eighteen inches long, to induce branching, as the fruits are better when thus distributed. Pick when ripe, which is usually known by the ends turning soft. Pick winter melons before they ripen, and all melons before frost can hurt the fruit. Store winter melons in a cool cellar to ripen. Diseases and pests are mostly those of cucumber. For melon -louse, use methods against plant-lice as under cucumber, or underspray with kerosene emulsion, one to ten, but made with whale-oil soap, and best mixed with Pyrethrum, 166 THE BOOK OF VEGETABLES MUSTARD, which is of the Brassica or Cabbage family, is in several varieties used as a salad or a pot- herb plant. It runs to seed in warm weather, and should therefore be sown in spring or fall; the seed will live over winter in the ground. Clean culture is necessary to prevent the seedlings from running wild, and the plant should not be allowed to seed itself and become a pest. The white Mustard is chiefly used as a salad plant, sown broadcast or in drills; the black or brown Mustard, the southern, and the Chinese varieties, some of them curled, are used chiefly for pot-herbs, and should be better known. Most of them are easily raised under glass, especially the white. Soil. — Any good garden soil, preferably warm and quick. Distances are somewhat according to variety; the white either broadcast on small areas or in drills nine inches apart, the others in drills twelve to eighteen inches apart, thinned to four to eight inches in the row. Depth. — For the white, one-half inch. For the others, one inch. Break down all flower- stalks as soon as they appear. Pick only the young leaves, of the white and black varieties, as wanted. Of the larger varieties all the leaves may be gathered. Pull whole plants or pick the leaves as wanted. Sow in September for a spring crop ; as soon as the MUSTARD— NASTURTIUM 167 ground is fit, for an early summer crop; and again in August for a fall crop. Diseases and pests are those of cabbage, but rarer. MUSTARD, TUBEROUS-ROOTED. This is usually called Chinese; its roots are like white turnips, and can be grown and eaten like them. Soil. — Preferably light and quick. NASTURTIUM. The common Nasturtium, or Indian Cress, in its tall and dwarf forms (Tropceolum majus and T. minus) is grown for its buds and unripe seeds, used in pickling, and for its flowers, used in garnishing. Either may be started in the house, best in pots or individual receptacles, as they transplant poorly. Or plant out-of-doors when frosts are past. Tall kinds should be provided with poles or a trellis on which to run ; the dwarf support themselves. Soil. — Light and rich. Distances. — For the dwarf, one foot by six to nine inches. For the tall, two feet by one. Depth. — About one inch. Sow when frosts are past. Or start under glass in April. Thin or transplant to permanent positions. Culture. — Give ordinary care. Pick the flowers as wanted. Pick the seed-pods be- fore they mature. 168 THE BOOK OF VEGETABLES NASTURTIUM, TUBEROUS-ROOTED, is a tropical or semi-tropical plant grown for its tubers, which in South America are considered a delicacy. It is a perennial plant treated as an annual, and in northern climates propagated by its tubers. In South America the people freeze the tubers after boiling them, by which means the taste is considerably improved. They are usually eaten with molasses. Soil. — Warm and light. Distances. — Hills three by three feet. Depth. — One inch for seed ; for tubers, two or three inches. Sow when frosts are past, four to five seeds to a hill. Thin to one plant. Dig when the vines are killed by frost. Keep frost from the tubers, and Store in sand. NEW ZEALAND SPINACH. See Spinach, New Zealand. NIGELLA SATIVA, or Love-in-a-Mist, or Fennel Flower, is a hardy annual sometimes grown for its seeds, used in seasoning. It does not transplant well. Soil. — Light and warm. Distances. — Rows one foot or more apart. Depth. — About one inch. Sow when the ground is fit, NIGHTSHADE 169 Thin at three inches to six to eight inches apart. Pick seeds as they ripen. NIGHTSHADE, BLACK-BERRIED. Black-berried Nightshade is Solamim nigrum, a hot-season plant whose leaves are sometimes used as greens. Soil. — Light and warm. Rows. — One foot apart. Depth. — About one inch. Sow when frosts are past. Thin to six inches. Culture. — Give ordinary care. Pick the leaves as wanted, or pull the whole plant. NIGHTSHADE, MALABAR or WHITE (Basella alba) is an annual plant of a different family, but also grown for its leaves, used as greens. B. cordifolia is used in the same manner. Soil. — Light and quick. Distances. — Hills two feet or more each way. Depth. — About one inch. Sow under glass in April, or outdoors when frosts are past, three to five seeds to a hill. When well up, Thin to one plant. Set out house-grown plants when frosts are past, after hardening. Pick the leaves as wanted when the plants are well established, but do not strip the plants. 170 THE BOOK OF VEGETABLES OCA (Oralis crenata) is a South American tuber- bearing-plant, little cultivated in North America. It is grown for its tender leaves and shoots (used like sorrel for salads or greens) but chiefly for its tubers. These, somewhat acid when fresh, turn sweet when exposed to the sun for a few days in woolen bags; when completely dried by this process, they taste like figs. The plant needs a long season and is very tender to frost. Start the tubers under glass in March, or Plant outdoors when frosts are past. Soil. — Light, warm and rich. Distances. — Three feet by three feet. Depth. — Two to three inches. Take cuttings from growing plants, like sweet potatoes. Culture. — Preserve the surface mulch until the vines cover the ground. Cover the stems with earth wherever they root, and more tubers will be produced. Dig when the vines are killed by frost. Dry as above. OKRA, or Gumbo, or Gombo (Hibiscus esculentus) is a hot-weather and very tender plant grown as an an- nual for its seed-pods, which are picked while tender for use in soups, stews or as a vegetable, or are dried or canned for winter use. Okra is of growing popularity, its mucilaginous effect being agreeable to many, though known to most only in Gumbo soup. For an early crop it is best started under glass, in pots, because it transplants poorly. The pods, which form early, and very quickly after flowering, should be picked before Fi«. 70. Okm seedlings. Two-thirds natural they develop woody fibers, which spoil them for use; the size of the pods at picking time depends upon the variety. Varieties are several, being chiefly Tall Green, Dwarf Green, and Lady-finger; the first two sub-divide into long- and short-podded, the Lady-finger into white- and green-podded. Types are likely to run to- gether, and only the best seeds should be bought. The varieties best for general use are the Dwarf Green Long- pod and the White Lady-finger; the dwarf succeeds best in the North. Soil should be light, warm, rich, and in the best 01 tilth. Distances are entirely according to the variety. Rows thirty inches to five feet apart, plants in the row ±\ 172 THE BOOK OF VEGETABLES twelve to thirty inches. Or plant in hills, two by two feet to three by three feet, and thin to two or three plants in the hill. Depth, — One to two inches, accord- ing as the soil is firm or loose. Sow for an early crop under glass in April, in pots, and repot as the plants grow. Sow outdoors in late Fig. so. okra. Dwarf May or early June, when frosts are plant of a long- t ^j , j the e j ht to ten pod variety. r * J 7 © seeds in the hill. Set out house-grown plants when frosts are past. Thin when the plants are growing well. Taken up with care, thinnings may be transplanted. Culture. — Preserve the surface-mulch. Fertilize while the plants are young, with two or three applications of nitrate of soda or liquid manure, a week apart. Cut with an inch of stem while the pods are tender; if they are too tough to slice with a kitchen knife, they are too old. The flowers open early in the morning, fade in a few hours, and the pods are usually ready to pick on the afternoon of the next day. The sizes of the pods vary with the varieties. Pick clean daily; otherwise the plant suspends production for a while. Pods may be kept fresh by moistening and spreading thinly on trays in a cool place. They heat in bulk, or in a closed receptacle, Plate VI. Dwarf Okra — Flower, Leaves, and Two Pods '\ OKRA— ONION 173 Uses are chiefly in soups, but Okra, when boiled, is excellent served hot or else as a cold salad. Some per- sons have to acquire the taste. For various recipes, see Farmers' Bulletin No. 232. Okra may be canned, or may be dried and kept for winter use. To dry, string and hang up. In the South the mature seed is sometimes roasted and ground for use as coffee. Do not cook in iron, copper, or brass, or the pods will be discolored and perhaps rendered poisonous. Diseases, not mentioned in Farmers'* Bulletin No. 232, are elsewhere reported as so troublesome that the plant cannot be grown in some localities. Rotation is given as the remedy. Pests are not dangerous. OLD HAN. See Rosemary. ONION (Allium Cepa) is the chief of a very im- portant vegetable family, and has been grown from antiquity for its bulbs, used for seasoning and cooking, for pickling, and for eating raw. It is a biennial and in some of its forms a perennial plant, and is grown as an annual or a biennial. Onions are propagated from seed (which should always be of the very best), from bulbs, from parts of compound bulbs, and from "tops," or bulbs formed- on the tops of the flower-stalks. Grow- ing from seeds require the best of physical condition 174 THE BOOK OF VEGETABLES for the land, as the seeds germinate very slowly, and the best of surface tillage, as the young plants are easily killed by weeds. The old style of onion-bed is now universally discarded _l i J |ifa^ |i _■; for culture in straight rows, and in Onion cul- ture more than in many others the wheel-hoe and mechanical planter are of great use. But hand- cultivated with wheel-hoe*. weeding is necessary, especially when the plants are young, and thinning also requires hand work. The Onion is very hardy to frost, and is somewhat tender to heat; therefore, the seed is always sown as early in the spring as passible, in order to have the plants well growing by midsummer. In mild climates, for the same purpose, seed is sown in the fall. From spring-sown seed the fall crop is gathered; for earlier Onions "sets," "tops," or "potato onions" are set out. These are all bulbs grown by one method or an- other, "sets" being bulbs arrested in their growth and stored for spring use, "potato onions" or "multipliers" being compound Onions of which the parts or bulbels are planted separately. Each bulbel will produce a com- pound bulb. "Tops" or bulblets are described above. There are several varieties of top-onions and potato- onions, while sets may be grown, as described below, from the seed of any variety, though the results vary. ONION 175 Seed is never grown from sets, as the results would probably be inferior. Varieties of Onions are classified according to methods of propagation, as above, or by shape (round, flat, oval and top-shape) and color (red yellow, white). Some varieties are very large. Diseases and pests are troublesome. Soil for Onions, since an early start is essential for an early crop, is best prepared in the fall by plowing, leaving the ground rough through the winter. For a late crop the ground may be prepared when the spring opens. The soil should be moist but well drained, rich, and "quick." Fresh or rough manure should not be used on Onion land, but well-rotted manure may be worked in, and should be supplemented with surface dress- ings of commercial fertilizers and wood-ashes, lightly worked in, since > Onions are chiefly surface feeders. Onion ground should not be light or loose, as the bulbs develop better on a firm surface. The preliminary sur- ma; its diTinoiu. f ace cu lti va ti on should be kept up until the time of planting, to conserve the moisture and kill all the weeds. Commercially, the choice of Onion land is of the greatest importance. Clay lands are too hard to work, A multiplier Onion. THE BOOK OF VEGETABLES one and one-half inches, and when about the thickness of the finger pull