War Gardens: A Pocket Guide for Home Vegetable GrowersFree, Montague
History
War Gardens: A Pocket Guide for Home Vegetable Growers
Free, Montague
Vegetable gardening
Artichoke (Jerusalem).—The tubers of this plant are unaffected by frost
and may be allowed to remain in the ground all winter. In those sections
where the frost penetrates the ground deeply a supply sufficient for use
during the winter should be dug in the fall and stored in sand in a cool
cellar.
Parsnip, Horseradish, and Salsify may be treated in the same way as the
preceding.
Beets should be carefully dug up after the first frost and handled
gently to avoid breaking or bruising them. Cut off the leaves about an
inch above the roots and pack them with moist sand or earth in boxes in
a cool cellar. Covering the roots in this way maintains their freshness
and prevents shriveling.
Carrots.—In the fall large numbers of fibrous roots are produced on the
sides of the large tap-root. These roots spoil the symmetry of the
carrots and impair their flavor. The crop should therefore be harvested
before these fibrous roots form. Observation of the roots is the only
way of determining the proper time to dig them up. In other respects
they are stored the same as beets.
Potatoes for winter use should be dug on a dry day as soon as possible
after the tops have died down. Leave them lying on the surface of the
ground for a few hours, so that they may dry properly. (It is
inadvisable to allow them to be exposed to the light for too long a
period, as it will cause the tubers to become green and unfit for use.)
They can then be gathered up and placed in boxes or barrels in a cool,
frost-proof cellar, but not exposed to the light. All diseased or
injured tubers should be laid aside for immediate use, provided they are
not too far gone, in which case they may be boiled and fed to pigs or
chickens, or destroyed by burning, so as to avoid the possibility of
spreading disease.
Potatoes may also be stored outdoors in sections where the winters are
not too severe. A high-lying sandy piece of ground should be chosen on
which to make the “pit.” Dig out the soil for a depth of about six
inches and line the excavation with three inches of straw. Place the
potatoes in a pile on this and cover with a similar thickness of straw
or hay. Place over this a layer of earth three inches thick to prevent
the straw from blowing away. Gradually increase the covering as the
weather becomes more severe, until a thickness of a foot or eighteen
inches is reached. A layer of manure over this is advisable in very cold
climates. If the pile is a large one it is important that ventilation
should be provided for. This may be accomplished by sticking a stovepipe
into the center of the pile and allowing the top to project above the
covering of earth, or by allowing a tuft of the straw that forms the
first covering to extend in the same manner. This vent-hole must be
covered with a board, a piece of oilcloth, or something similar to
prevent rain from entering.
Other vegetables that may be stored in this way are _beets, carrots,
turnips, salsify_, and _parsnips_.
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