History of my tomatoes, Bettie Vann Tapscott

[image of green leaves]

History of my tomatoes Bettie Vann Tapscott

1915 [underlined]

Greeting [underlined]

Im a little girl between 12 and 13 years old. I joined the canning club this year because I was in it last year and done so well. I paid my expenses, put $50.00 in the bank and helpt out enough to buy my cans this year.

I began work about April 17. I sowed my seed bed, in a cold frame and when the plants were about 4 or 5 inches high I transplanted them and when they grew good and strong I was ready to plant them in my garden.

I selected my garden in deepsandy soil that had been broken last fall, because I have learned that a sandy soil grows smoother tomatoes for me.

My land was broke again this spring and spread with manure which was disked in. At planting time it was harrowed and made into flat beds about 3 ft apart.

About 200 lbs. of Fertilizer was put into the drills.

The season was so dry I had to water out my plants, and the sun so scorchy I shaded some of them a day or two with pages from an old catalog. I cuped the paper over them and placed soil on the corners to hold them there.

My garden was plowed 3 times with a 4 hoe cultivator and I raked it all over 5 times with a garden rake something like this.

[image of a rake]

When my plants were about 18 inches high I began to stake and prime them this was mighty hard work and took me a long time, but I had the stakes that I had used the year before and I saved hiring it done. I just stood on a box and drove them. I finished up my garden of about 426 plants, and at the end of the next 3 weeks I had something to be proud of.

I had 10 rows 3 ft. apart and 132 ft long right beside of the road. where everybody could see it and admire it.

Harvesting and canning began aug. 4 and closed Sept. 24.

I gathered 5098 pounds and filled 1003 #3 cans and made a good many into ketchup, chow-chow etc, besides what we used fresh for the table. I sold some and gave some away

Thanks to Mis Bettie Van Tapcutt for a fine lot of tomatoes, one we weighed and it tipped the scale at 2 pounds.

Mrs. Morris, our county agents thinks it fine and I guess it is all right or she would not say so for mama thinks Mrs. Morris is just splendid.

In grading I always made 3 grades, first for canning, second for ketchup and third for the pigs.