intervals all day.
This was at Elizabeth's suggestion. By this treatment these were saved.
So Jack, sadder and wiser, started over again.
When the lettuce plants had four little leaves Jack, with Elizabeth's
help, transplanted some into the drills left for them. When they were
larger yet, they transplanted the lettuce to the real garden. This is
the way they did it. In the first place the children chose a cloudy day
for the work. A cloudy day is far better than a bright sunny one because
bright sun is too strong for little lettuces which have been disturbed
from their places and put into new ones.
To transplant, dig up a number of plants and plenty of earth with them.
Use a trowel for this work, gently lifting plants and earth. A drill may
be made; or, perhaps better yet, make holes with the dibber. Pour a
little water into the hole. Then gently separate a plant taking as much
soil with it as you can keep on its roots. Place the little plant in the
hole or drill, and cover the roots with soil. With the fingers press the
soil firmly about the plant. Water the earth, not the leaves of the
plant. Next day, and for several days, cover the transplanted plants
with strawberry baskets. These are far better than newspaper coverings,
because light and air freely come through the crevices of the basket.
The newspaper makes a covering too tight and close for the tender
lettuces. Between plants the children left six inches.
Jack raised Boston lettuce. He not only had enough for his mother all
summer long, but sold some, too. The way he happened to sell it was
merely an accident. Not far from the village was a large summer hotel.
One day the proprietor had driven around to the house to see Jack's
father on business. As the men were talking Jack and Elizabeth came from
the garden with two fine heads of lettuce.
"Have you any more lettuce than what you can use yourself?" asked the
proprietor, after feeling of the heads of lettuce and admiring the good
firm centres. "Yes," replied Jack, "I have now, and shall have all
along, more than we can use. You see I keep making sowings every ten
days in the coldframe, and transplanting."
"I'll take all the extra lettuce you have at five cents a head. That is
what I pay all summer long for it. To-morrow bring me up what you can."
"Thank you, sir. Ten heads will walk up to-morrow."
"The first time I've ever heard of heads walking," laughed Jack's
father, well pleased with his lad.
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