ABC OF VEGETABLE GARDENING…..
This how-to book includes chapters on getting ready, mapping the garden, planting, seeds, early work, house plants, fruits, hot beds and cold frames, and small gardens.
AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY…..
Eben Eugene Rexford (July 16, 1848 – October 18, 1916) was an American writer and poet, and author of lyrics to popular and gospel songs. Eben E. Rexford was born in Johnsburg, New York. He moved with his family to Ellington, Wisconsin in 1855. His first poems were published in the New York Ledger when Rexford was fourteen. Among the many songs he wrote, Rexford is best remembered for the lyrics to “Silver Threads Among the Gold”, which were set to music by Hart Pease Danks. This song was one of the first items to be recorded mechanically. Another poem that has had continuing popularity is “The Ride of Paul Venarez”, which is considered to be a “cowboy poem”, even though the author was from Wisconsin. It has been turned into a song, “Billy Venero”, and has a colorful history.
Rexford was a prolific writer. Most of his books were about gardening. In addition, he wrote many poems and stories. He worked with the Ladies’ Home Journal for fourteen years. After leaving that magazine, he wrote for American Homes and Gardens, House and Gardens, and American Home Monthly. His articles also appeared frequently in Lippincott’s and Outing. Rexford’s fiction was published stories by Beadle and Adams and other periodical publishers. He was a member of the Chicago Press Club and the Authors Club of Boston. For more than twenty years he served as organist at the Congregational Church of Shiocton, Wisconsin. Following many years as Town Clerk at Bovina, he died in Green Bay and was buried at Bovina Cemetery. He received an honorary doctorate from his alma mater, Lawrence University, in 1908, and he was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970.
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chapter 11 part B of ABC of vegetable gardening by Eban Eugene Rexford this LibriVox recording is in the public domain chapter 11 part B leftovers the housewife who likes to make her table and the food she places upon it as attractive as possible will do well to pot a few plants of parsley in early fall choose for this purpose the smaller plants three or four can be put into one pot if the latter is of good size these can be kept in the kitchen window where they will be quite as ornamental as most house plants or they can be kept in the cellar window if frost is prevented from getting to them from them one can always obtain material for the decoration of roasts and other dishes which require garnishment squashes and pumpkins will not keep well if stored in very warm places a room that is just a little above the frost point is the best place for them it will be found far superior to a cellar as the latter is generally more or less damp and dampness is one of the worst enemies of these vegetables a cool dry atmosphere is what they need and if it can be given them they can be kept in a fine condition through the entire winter care should be taken in gathering them to not break their stems if this is done they frequently decay at the place where stem and vegetable unite and this condition spreads rapidly to all portions of them the question is frequently asked would you advise plowing or spading the garden in fall if it could have but one season’s attention I would advise giving it in spring but if the owner of a garden has ample time to devote to it I would advise plowing or spading in both seasons turning up the soil in fall exposes to the elements that portion of it which is most likely to contain worms and insects which is burrowed away for the winter and it is desirable to make way with as many of these as possible stirring the soil in spring will do them very little harm as the weather will be in their favor fall stirring of the soil is also conducive to a greater degree of melaness than is likely to result from one operation and that in spring as the clouds of earth that are thrown up disintegrate under the influence of frost and will be in a condition to pulverize easily when spring comes the average gardener doesn’t seem to associate the growing of vegetables with an idea of beauty but he will find if he looks into the matter that the vegetable garden can be made really ornamental a row of carrots with its feathery green foliage is quite as attractive as many of our decorative plants and beets with crimson foliage are really tropical in their rich coloring parsley and lettuce make excellent and ornamental edgings for beds containing other vegetables tomatoes trained to upright trelluses are quite as showy as many kinds of flowers when their fruit begins to ripen peppers work in charmingly with the color scheme of the vegetable garden a little study of garden possibilities will soon convince one that it is an easy matter to make the vegetable garden as attractive so far as color is concerned as the flower garden is and while we are at work at gardening why not make it as attractive as possible the pleasing appearance of it will lend additional qualities to the fine flavor of its vegetables if we believe that beauty and practicality ought to work in harmony with each other sage summer savory and other garden grown plants used for seasoning or medicinal purposes should be gathered when in their prime if one waits until late in the season before cutting them much of their virtue will have been expended in the ripening process which all plants undergo after they complete their growth cut them close to the ground and tie them in loose bunches and hang them in a shady place until their moisture has evaporated then put them in paper bags and hang away in a store room or closet for the winter plants treated in this way will retain nearly all their original flavor and be found far superior to the kinds you buy at the store cucumbers that have grown to full size should be gathered if not wanted for use as to allow them to remain on the vines after reaching maturity and while ripening materially affects the productiveness of the plants endive is the basis of one of our best and most wholesome fall and winter salads when nearly full grown it must be bleached like celery gather the leaves together and tie them in such a manner as to exclude the light do this when they are perfectly dry if wet or damp they are likely to rot some gardeners use what is called onion sets instead of seed these sets are the result of sewing seed very thickly in spring the season before they are wanted for planting as soon as their tops die off in summer as they will if seed was sewn thickly enough store in a dry and airy place and the following spring replant by this method large onions are obtained very early in the season most market gardeners depend on sets instead of seed mention has been made of a few of our pot and medicinal plants here is a larger list for those who are interested in plants of this kind balm sweet basil carowway catnip chamomile coriander dill penny royal peppermint saffron tanzy and wormwood our grandmothers had unlimited faith in the medicinal qualities of some of these plants and many a mother will be glad to know that she has a stock of some of them stored away for winter use when colds and coughs are prevalent among children or grown people some of the old home remedies are far preferable to those we are accustomed to using as they are harmless if they do no good which is something that cannot be said of most drugs that are taken into the system don’t wait for the current worm to show itself on your bushes you can safely count on its coming act on the defensive in advance by spraying your plants thoroughly with an infusion of nicotide keeping in mind the fact that it is easier to prevent an insect from establishing itself on your plants than it is to get rid of it when it is secured a foothold there in spraying be sure that the infusion gets to all parts of the bush throw it up well among the branches simply spraying it over the plant isn’t what is needed it must reach the underside of the foliage and all parts where insects and other enemies might hide away and escape contact with the infusion used when the small fruit plants in your garden show evidence of having outlived their usefulness don’t try to renew them but dig them up and plant new ones you cannot make a satisfactory plant out of one that has begun to show age it is a good plan to set a few new plants each season if this is done there need be no gap in the fruit supply as there will always be some coming on to take the places of those whose days of usefulness are over too often we neglect our gardens until they are in such a debilitated condition that we get but slight returns from them and then we set to work to make them all over by planting something each season we keep them up to bearing point and have no offseasons i wonder how many housewives who may read this little book have ever dried sweet corn for winter use not many I think but if they were to do so one season I am quite confident that thereafter they would not willingly be without a generous supply of it for it will be found far more delicious than the ordinary canned article in drying it some cook it for a few minutes and then cut it from the cob and spread it out on plates to dry others do not think it worthwhile to cook it but cut it from the cob as soon as gathered and dry it by first putting it in the oven for a few minutes before exposing it to the sun to dry the little time in the oven is equivalent to the partial cooking spoken of turn it on the plates on which it is spread every day and do not consider it dry enough to store away until it appears to have parted with all its moisture then put it into paper bags or glass jars and set away in a cool dark place to remain until you desire to use it soak for 2 or 3 hours before putting it on the stove to cook when properly cooked it will be tender and have a more delicious flavor than canned corn the generous use of butter and cream will make it a dish that is fit to set before a king those who happen to live in places where it is not possible to have sellers because of low ground can have places in which to store vegetables for winter use that are really preferable to the ordinary seller by constructing what might be called above ground pits for one of a better name build up a wall four or 5 ft high and bank up about it with so much earth that frost cannot penetrate it cover with a roof that will keep out cold and rain have a doorway opening into it from an entry built after the fashion of the little storm vestibules we put over the front doors of our dwellings in winter in other words an entry into which we can step and close one door behind us before we open the one that lets us into the place where our vegetables are such a room can be constructed with but little expense because of its being above ground it will be drier than a cellar and in the majority of cases it will be more convenient to get at it should be boarded up with a good quality of matched boarding and its walls should be lined with two or three thicknesses of sheathing paper put on in such a manner as to show no cracks or openings the best place for a vegetable garden is where the soil is naturally well drained and where there is a slope to the south such a slope enables it to get the full benefit of sunshine and sunshine it will be found is an important factor in successful gardening if such an exposure is out of the question aim to make conditions as favorable as possible a closely boarded fence on the north side of a garden affords excellent protection from cold winds early in the season and helps greatly in keeping away frost in fall when many plants are maturing mention is made in the paragraph above of good drainage this is quite important if the soil of a garden is not well drained many kinds of vegetables cannot be grown in it and few will attain to even a partial degree of success therefore see to it that by ditching or the use of tile all surplus water is properly disposed of much good can be done to a heavy soil by adding to it sharp coarse sand old mortar anything that will have a tendency to counteract the heaviness resulting from undue retention of water or a naturally too close character of soil if sand is obtainable and your garden is one in which clay predominates use it in generous quantities you will find it as beneficial as manure spread it over the surface before plowing or spading and work it in thoroughly a few seasons application will bring about a very marked change for the better in any garden whose soil cannot be made fine and mellow without the addition of some disintegrating matter good drainage must be secured in order to grow good vegetables and the use of tile will be found a most effective remedy for the evil of a soil unduly retentive of moisture in almost all localities there will be families who have no garden but who would make liberal use of vegetables if they were easily procurable there is a chance for boys and girls to earn an honest penny if it is found that there is likely to be more in the home garden than the family can make use of canvas the neighborhood for customers for the probable surplus it will be found an easy matter to dispose of it i know several amateur child gardeners who secure enough in this way to pay for all the seed they need some of them have regular customers each season and gardening begins to look to them like a profitable occupation i don’t know that they will become professional gardeners but they will be learning something as well as earning something while they are fitting themselves for whatever occupation in life they may decide on and what they learn in the garden will be of benefit in afterlife in more ways than one don’t neglect to save everything that can be made use of for fertilizing purposes in many a home the suds of washing day are disposed of as worthless if applied to growing things in the garden they will often prove as beneficial as the application of a fertilizer that costs quite a little sum of money especially is this the case if the season happens to be a dry one if there does not seem to be a need of more moisture in the soil on wash day save the soapy water against a time of need it will be sure to come handy during the season some families are so unfortunate as to have no cellar few vegetables can be kept well or for a great length of time in ordinary rooms unless something is done to modify the conditions usually existing there if a large box is filled with dry sand potatoes parsnips salsify beets and carrots can be buried in it and made to retain their freshness for an indefinite period of course this storage box should be kept as far as possible from artificial heat and no dampness should be allowed to come in contact with it as sand absorbs moisture almost as readily as a sponge and the satisfactory keeping of the vegetables named depends upon dryness more than anything else the lower the temperature of the place in which the vegetables are stored the better provided it never gets below the freezing point where boxes of sand are used slight freezings are not likely to seriously injure vegetables as the sand extracts the frost so gradually that but little harm is done but hard freezing must be guarded against or premature decay will result it is an excellent plan to bury some of the vegetables named above in a dry place in the garden for use in spring they will be found as fresh and crisp as when put into the ground if covered deep enough to protect them from frost end of chapter 11 part B