Excerpt from The Southern Planter, Vol. 1: Devoted to Agriculture, Horticulture, and the Household Arts; February 1841

While the plants are sprouting, he takes a piece of light, poor sandy soil, which ought to have been fallowed the preceding fall. This he again ploughs and rakes down fine and level, about the last of April. He lays off his rows with a single plough not more than two inches deep, four feet apart, running from north to south, these trenches he fills well with any kind of old well rotted manure; then with a single plough he turns a furrow on each side of the row, so as to put a cover over the manure about 3 inches deep. This depth may be attained, with care, by the use of the plough alone, without an after resort to the hoe.

Upon these ridges, levelled down smooth and even, the plants are set.

In three or four weeks from the time of planting, if the bed has been properly attended to, the plants will have attained the height of some 3 or 4 inches. When this is the case, he avails himself of such a season as is generally used for setting out cabbage plants, taking espe cial care that the ground is not too wet, which is even worse than being too dry. In drawing them, he places one hand on the bed, over the root, and with the other gently disengages the plant from the mother root, taking care not to injure the fibres of the root, which he wants to afford a succession of plants.

To set them out he makes a dibble of a piece of wood, about 2 inches in diameter, and about 2t feet long; four inches from the bottom he inserts another piece, at a right angle, 16 inches long, which being the distance between the plants, the instruments tapered and sharpened at the point serves to lay of the distance, and make the hole for the plant at the same time. The following cut will more clearly show this simple and. Useful contrivance.

The plants must be set as deep as the first leaf, and the holes must be lightly filled with fine earth, taken between the fingers, and gently pressed against the plant.

When the plants have fairly begun to grow, he throws a furrow to them on each side, with a single plough, taking care not to cover the plant. Attention must be paid to keep grass from about the vines, until they begin to run freely, after which they should not be disturbed. Hence the necessity of poor, clean ground, that troubles you less with grass, which you cannot disturb the vines to eradicate.

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