The Rural Voice, 1979-11, Page 45beets and cure them in an airy shed for a
week or so before collecting the seed.
CARROTS (Biennial) Carrots will
cross with other carrot varieties and with
wild Queen Anne's Lace within 200 feet.
Well -mulched carrots will usually survive
the winter, especially under a good snow
cover, and may be thinned in spring to 12
to 20 inches apart to allow space for seed
stalk formation. They may also be fall -dug
and stored like beets. Seeds are ripe within
60 days after flowering and they fall off
promptly when ripe. Bag the seedheads or
pick stalks when the second group of
flowers has ripened seed. Early -ripening
heads will shatter before later ones are
ripe.
LETTUCE (Annual) Good and easy.
Lettuce is self -pollinated so you don't need
to isolate varieties. The thing to remember
is to save seed from the last, rather than
the first, plant to go to seed. A single plant
can produce enough seed for most families.
Seeds are ready to gather when wisps of
grayish -white down succeed the yellow
flowers.
PEPPERS (Annual) Although peppers
do self -pollinate, different varieties plan-
ted less than 50 feet apart are often
cross-pollinated by insects. Save seed from
red peppers; green pepper seed is
immature and will not germinate well. Just
shake the seeds out of the pod when you
cut the pepper to eat it; no special
preparation is necessary.
PUMPKIN (Annual) The pumpkin family
is probably responsible for those tales you
hear about the pumpkin and the cantaloupe
that crossed. The truth is that crossing
occurs only within a species; therefore
pumpkins can't cross with cucumbers,
cantaloupes, or most winter squash. The
species C. pepo, though, includes a wide
variety of vegetables: zucchini, gourds,
small Jack o' lantern pumpkins, acorn
squash, patty pan and yellow crookneck
squash, and all of these varieties do cross
within 100 feet or so. Most of the weird
crosses you get when you save pumpkin
seed are probably from within this species.
Pumpkin seed is ripe when the fruit turns
orange. Zucchini and other summer squash
should be ai,uweu w mature uuur the rind
is hard before seeds are harvested. Rinse
off pulp and dry the seeds before storing
them.
TOMATOES (Annual) Tomatoes are self -
pollinated, so seed of adjacent varieties
will come true. Save the tomato you most
want to eat and let it remain on the vine
until it's overripe but not rotten. Then
press the whole tomato into a glass jar, add
1/4 cup of wate r, and let the fruit ferment
for several days. Fermentation controls the
seed -borne disease, bacterial canker. The
pulp and worthless seeds will rise to the
top. Good, viable seeds settle lower in the
brew and may be strained off, rinsed and
dried after 2 to 4 days.
Power to Go
CASE
BATTERIES
Performance Engineering!
Power up tor cold weather starts
For your cars, trucks,
tractors or construction
equipment.
GET THE BATTERY
THAT'S DESIGNED
FOR TOP
PERFORMANCE
YES WE TAKE
TRADE-INS
Your old battery is worth '3. to '10
off the price of a new Case Battery.
AND SONS LTD.
Bayfield Rd,
CLINTON
482-3409
EIISE SPERRY+NEW HOLLAND
THE RURAL VOICE/NOVEMBER 1979 PG. 43