Temperature For Seed Germination

1895

It has been ascertained by an extended series of experiments that rye and winter wheat will germinate in soil the temperature of which is as low as 32 degrees. Barley, oats, flax, clover and peas will sprout at 35 degrees. The turnip is as cold blooded as the rye and winter wheat but the carrot needs 38 degrees and the bean 40 degrees before they will make the initial effort to send the life shoot in search of air and light. — St. Louis Republic.


Round Numbers

Her Father — What is your income, sir?
Her Lover — I can only give it to you in round numbers.
Her Father — Ah!
Her Lover — No other numbers will express it.
Her Father — Oh!
— Detroit Tribune.

How The Bean Brothers Woke

1916

"Here are five little Bean Brothers for you," said mother one morning dropping something into Boykin's hand. "They have been in bathing all night long."

"With their clothes on too," exclaimed Boykin; "their little white coats are all wrinkled."

"You'd better put them to bed right away," suggested mother. "Here's a flower-pot on the sunny windowsill. The fresh soft earth will make a fine bed for the Bean Brothers. And if they have a good nap, who knows what will happen?"

So Boykin put them to bed in the soft, brown earth and covered them up snugly. Day after day the Bean brothers slept soundly and showed not a single sign of waking up. Then one morning Bean Brother poked up a tiny sign of slim green back, out from under the bedclothes, but his head kept safe underneath.

"Come, get up, you sleepyhead," cried Boykin, and, taking hold of Bean Brother's back, he pulled him straight out of bed.

"Oh, see," he called to mother, "Bean Brother has a leg, too, a long spindly one."

"Better put him back again, if you can, and let the others sleep a little longer. It's not time for them to be up yet," mother told him.

Next day the other Bean Brothers had poked up their little bent backs too, but Boykin only watched them and sprinkled their bed with fresh water. Day after day the Bean Brothers pushed up their backs higher.

"A funny way to get out of bed," declared Boykin; "they hump themselves up like green caterpillars."

Then one day the strongest of the Bean Brothers ventured to pull himself away from the warm bedclothes, but he could not stand up straight, and drooped his head sleepily.

"Oh, see, mother," cried Boykin, "Bean Brother has grown out of his old coat and split it in two."

True enough, what Boykin had called Bean Brother's coat before he had tucked him into bed was hanging in two pieces to his side.

Pretty soon the other Bean Brothers pulled themselves out from under the bedclothes. Then little by little they all straightened up and lifted their green plumy heads. The old coats clinging to their sides shrank and shriveled and finally dropped off altogether.

Boykin picked up two of the wrinkled bits.

"His coat is all worn out," said he.

"He won't need it again," mother explained. "But it was a good coat in its day and a wonderful one too, for it not only kept Bean Brother warm when he was a tiny baby, but it gave him food so that he could grow into this nice tall Bean plant."

"And will he always live in this [bed*]."

"No," answered mother; "when he is stronger we will take him and his four brothers out of this bed and put them in a corner of our big garden, where you can watch them." — Rebecca Deming Moore, in Mothers' Magazine.

*Note: This story was reprinted in a newspaper. And it is missing a line, leaving this paragraph hanging with "live in this".

—The Fryeburg Post, Fryeburg, Maine, Sept. 26, 1916, p. 4.

Transplant in the Fall

1916

In general, the fall is the best time to plant trees and shrubs on the home grounds. When planted in the fall, the plant is given an opportunity to spend its strength in producing new root growth rather than top growth. These new roots are the "feeding" roots, and if well established will give added vigor to the plant the following year. The protection and health of the root system is the most important consideration in plant growing.

There are some exceptions to this rule. If the summer and fall seasons have been unusually dry and the plant has suffered from drought, it may be best to wait until early spring to transplant, as plants may recuperate during the winter. In some parts of the country, late summer planting of evergreens has proved best, but for Missouri early spring planting seems more satisfactory.

It is best to transplant all trees and shrubs in the fall. It is possible to move plants after they have leafed out, but there is some danger of over-evaporation of moisture from the leaves and bark which will exhaust the strength of the roots. The plant will then show wilt and spend its strength on new leaves instead of readjusting its roots. To lessen the danger from evaporation, it is always well to cut the tops back severely, and if in leaf, the trunk of a tree should be wrapped with straw or sphagnum moss to keep it moist. It is better to transplant early in the morning or late in the afternoon.

Rainy or cloudy days are the best ones in which to do planting. Transplant after the leaves drop in the autumn or before they open in the spring. Remove injured roots, broken branches, and cut back the tops. Preserve the fine hair-like roots; they are the feeders, the others only serve as anchors. Never allow the roots to dry out in the wind or sun. Cover them with earth or wet straw. Dig the hole much larger than the spread of the roots and do not bend or crowd them. Tamp the soil firmly and closely about the roots, but leave about two inches of loose soil at the surface. These planting rules are important. A tree lives longer than a man; take time and care in planting it, and, in general, plant in the fall.

—The Fryeburg Post, Fryeburg, Maine, Sept. 26, 1916, p. 4.

My Neighbor Says

1929

To clean a leather bag, wash it well with tepid water and a little saddle soap.

To prevent the bristles of a tooth brush coming out soak the brush when new in cold water for twenty-four hours before using it.

Don't draw hot water from the tank when baking. If you do the oven will cool off.

Give house plants a little liquid plant food during the winter. Soil grows poor in the house and needs to be enriched.

Asparagus Cultivation

1910

How to Make a Bed of the Edible Young Shoots

Asparagus is a perennial herb cultivated for its edible young shoots. It is a rugged plant and will thrive under adverse conditions, but to obtain the succulent stalks needed for culinary purposes well drained, rich soil is absolutely necessary. The soil should be well mixed with rotted manures containing much nitrogen and potash.

Prepare the bed by plowing or spading deeply, beginning the work early and looking after the drainage problem carefully. Plants at least one year old should be obtained for this bed. They can be raised from seed, which is sown outdoors in April in drills one foot apart, the seed being covered about one-half inch. Plants suitable for transplanting the following spring may be easily grown this way, or roots may be obtained from one to three years old.

Set the plants in the permanent bed in furrows eighteen inches apart, the plants being the same distance apart in each furrow. Be careful to spread the roots out naturally and set each plant on a little mound of earth in the furrow. Cover at first to a depth of a few inches, gradually filling in as the season advances. In the fall cut back all the stocks to a level with the ground for the winter.

In the second year loosen the soil by shallow spading. When the first shoots appear the rows may be hilled up somewhat. Cut sparingly until the third year, as the plants will be more productive afterward.

The Influence of Man Upon Climate

1877

The influence of man upon climate has been a favorite subject of late years, and it is now well known that, by cutting down forests and draining the soil, men can materially change the climate of a country.

Some recent experiments conducted in Germany confirm this belief, by showing the extent to which woods will affect the rainfall. Two observatories were established for the purposes of comparison — one over a clump of trees forty feet high, and the other over a bare sandy plain about three hundred yards from the forest. Both observatories, were built at the same height from the ground. Twelve months' observation showed that of the total rainfall within that period ten per cent more rain fell over the trees than over the bare sand distant three hundred and thirty yards from them. Further, the air above the wood was charged with aqueous vapor to the extent of ten percent in excess of the air over the barren open soil. The ground too, under the trees, retained far more water than the exposed earth, evaporation from the surface, thanks to its shade of trees and moss, being only one-sixth of that outside their friendly shelter.

These results are valuable in that they point out a possible means of improving the condition of sterile tracts, i.e., by planting trees.

Arbor Day

1922

Throughout the nation far and wide
Let's plant on Arbor Day
A tree to cast its shade upon
The traveler on his way.

A tree to beautify the road
For all to pass and see
How nature cares for things that grow
As well as you and me.

And if each year on Arbor Day
Each one could plant a tree,
The lanes and roads of this great land
A marv'lous sight would be.

—Charleston Daily Mail, Charleston, West Virginia, April 7, 1922, page 14.