GARDENER'S INSTRUCTOR; CONTAINING A CATALOGUE of GARDEN AND HERE SEEDS, WITH PRACTICAL DIRECTIONS UNDER EACH HEAD, FOR THE CULTIVATION OF CULINARY VEGETABLES & HERBS: WITH A CALENDAR, Showing the Work necessary to be done in a Kitchen Garden, IN EVERY MONTH THROUGHOUT THE SEASON; ALSO, DIRECTIONS FOR FORCING OR FORWARDING VEGETABLES OUT OF THE ORDINARY SEASON. BY T. BRIDGEMAN, "The end of all instruction should be the attainment of useful knowledge." NEW-YORK: PRINTED AND SOLD BY D. MITCHELL, 265 BOWERY: Bold by the Author, corner of 18th street and Broadway, immediately north of Union Place: 1836. HARVARD 449404 [Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year Eighteen Hundred and Thirty-Six, by THOMAS BRIDGEMAN, in the Clerk's Office, of the District Court of the United States, for the Southern District of New-York, in the Second Circuit.] PREFACE. THE sixth edition of "The Young Gardener's Assistant" having been extended to four times its original dimensions, by the introduction of various subjects connected with Horticulture, I have been induced to publish that part which relates to the cultivation of Culinary Vegetables, Pot Herbs, &c. under the title of "The Kitchen Gardener's Instructor." This has been done with a view to enable our respectable seedsmen to afford instruction, at a trifling expense, to those of their customers whose attention may be directed wholly to that branch of Horticulture, and thereby save themselves the blame of such as may not have given their seeds a fair trial, for want of knowing how to dispose of them in the ground, Having had sixteen years' experience as a market-gardener, and eight as a seedsman, I am aware of the importance of correct information on the subject of Gardening; and, from a conviction that the reputation of many honest seedsmen is often unsparingly attacked through the failure of seeds, when the fault lies not with them, but with the Gardener, I have endeavoured, in my humble way, to render myself useful both to the seedsman and the gardener, by giving brief directions for the management of a Kitchen Garden in such a way as is calculated to insure success. But as much depends on minute attention to points apparently trifling, I would remind my readers that the products of a garden are natives of various soils and climates, and that while some vegetables can only be raised in cool and temperate weather, others require the heat of the summer to bring them to perfection. This consideration should induce gardeners to watch the seasons as they pass, and also to plant their seeds at suitable depths and distances, according to their nature and dimensions, as an opportunity of raising some of the luxuries of the garden being lost for the season, may occasion more anxiety and trouble than it would cost to acquire a correct knowledge of the Art of Gardening. It is, however, of the utmost importance to a gardener, that he obtain such seeds as will grow freely, and produce vegetables calculated to suit the market. As I value my reputation above all things upon earth, charity forbids me to believe that any man of standing would wilfully sell bad seeds. It is true, that the most careful may at times be deceived, especially in such seasons when a full supply of fresh seeds cannot be obtained from their regular growers; but, in general, a regular seedsman may be supposed to know the true character of his stock, and if he studies his interest, he will not wilfully sell an article that is not calculated to do him credit. It must, however, be admitted, that knowledge is as necessary to a seedsman as a gardener, and therefore the above remarks cannot apply to every storekeeper who may sell seeds, because many, being mere agents, do not pretend to know one sort of seed from another, and from its not being a primary object with them, it cannot be expected that they will take the same interest in the traffic as a regular seedsman would do, and therefore such agents may not consider their reputation at stake. The experience of old and skilful gardeners will bear witness, that failures often occur even with good seeds, and with the very best attention on the part of the gardener. It often happens that insects will so infest the land, as to devour the seed while sprouting, and before a plant is seen above ground. Sometimes, a serious drought succeeding a heavy rain, will cause seed to perish through incrustation of the soil, and very frequently seed will fail to vegetate in dry soils and seasons, for want of pressure. I was once called upon by a neighbour to examine his garden, in which he had sown several sorts of seeds a month previous, which he had condemned as barren and unfruitful. On looking over his land, I perceived a horse track the animal had broken his hold, and traversed the garden in different directions. On tracing the horse's footsteps, I perceived plants coming up thick in the tracks, which convinced me that if the seed had been planted deeper, or the ground rolled at the time of depositing the seed therein, the gardener would have had no cause to complain either of the seedsman or his seeds.* The above instance of loss, occasioned through want of attention to points apparently of trifling importance, not being a solitary one, I would urge the gardener to strict precision and diligence in his undertaking; and, as my object has been to impart useful knowledge throughout the following pages, they who are in pursuit of information on the subject of gardening, are invited to a perusal, before they deposit their seeds in the ground, and I flatter myself that their labour will not be in vain. New-York, Jan. 18, 1836. T. BRIDGEMAN. As it is not intended in this Preface to give directions, but merely to show the object of the work, I would here inform the reader, that the general remarks for the management of the Kitchen Garden, page 6 to 14, exhibit the method of destroying insects; also of drilling, rolling, planting, and managing the varied soils; together with some useful hints relative to the durability of the vegetative principles of different species and varieties of seed. |