Vegetable Culture, a Primer for Amateurs Cottagers, and Allotment-Holers (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1896 Excerpt: ...the plants not only tends to render the pods finer, but it also, when the Black Aphis is abundant, removes those portions of the plant on which the insects prefer to feed and ruin the crops. Runner Beans. Whilst under this heading it is usua to associate the scarlet or rough Runner, it must not be forgotten that there are also smooth-podded Runners of great merit that are well worthy of good cultivation. All the Runner Beans grow tall if supported by stakes or other material of adequate height. Where the soil has been deeply worked by trenching, and is well fed by good dressings of manure, the rows placed 6 to 8 feet apart, and the seeds sown not less than 6 inches asunder in the drills, it frequently happens that the growth will run to a height of 12 feet and produce flowers and pods most abundantly, all the way from bottom to top; and if the pods are gathered as soon as they are large enough for use, preventing seed formation, the plants will continue productive from early in July until the end of October. In gardens it is always preferable to sow rows of Runner Beans at very wide intervals so that other crops can come between them. In that way ample light and air reaches the plants, and the flowers set profusely. Very much, however, may be decided by local conditions. Wonderfully productive are these climbing Beans when trained up string or to tall sticks close to walls or fences. Even in towns they often do well in that way, and they are also seen forming useful and ornamental arches in suburban gardens as represented in Fig. 24. In field culture or in allotments, where it may not be practicable to furnish stakes for supports, the usual practice is to sow thinly in drills 3 feet apart, pinching the twining shoots frequently and thus keeping the plants d...