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Show ThlMlNi et Beets. About the time that the brets show the fourth leaf tho bunching and thinning thin-ning process begins. Tills is necessary to remove the excess of plants. Single Sin-gle plants Bhould be left In tho row from 0 to 10 Inches apart, depending on the distance between the rows and the kind of soli. The time of thinning Is Important. If the proper amount of seed lias been used there will be a considerable excess of plants, duo to tho nearness of the seeds to one another. an-other. A still further excess lesults from the fact that each particular seed contains from 1 to (I germs, all of which are liable to germinate. It is evident that, If all the germs In a single seed grow, wc are liable to have a bunch of several plants, standing stand-ing very close together, often Intertwining Inter-twining and forming a network of lootletH. The longer these plants arc allowed to grow In this way the moic ccfiplex, dltllcult,and harmful becomes the piocess of removing tho superfluous plants. If tills thinning Is put olT too long It disturbs the position posi-tion of the plants which are to remain, re-main, breaks their tender lootlots, and materially and permanently injures in-jures them. Every effort .should bo made to accomplish this thinning as quickly as possible. A little money spent at tills stage proves a very good Investment in tho after stages of tho plant. A beet giowcr should'piep.trc himself beforehand, and be ready to accomplish this work quickly and not allow It to diag along. "With tho best of intentions and preparations, ho Is liable to bo more or less hampered by lalns and other dllllcultles, but ho should not fall to exert ills best efforts to get his crop thinned as soon as possible after snlllclcntly matured for this purpose. The process Is known In tho common com-mon piulance of the grower as "blocking "block-ing and thinning." Blocking is accomplished ac-complished by a person walking along tho row with a short handled hoe, sharp and of sutllclcnt width, cutting cut-ting out part of the beets so as to leave bundles the proper distance apart for the plants In tho row. Thinning Is accomplished by a person creeping along on his hands and knees and with a deft movement of the hands and Ungurcs removing all tho plants In the bunch except the one his cyo selects as the strongest plant. This all requites agility," attention, and industrious and laborious effort; It is in a sense a kind of cultivation, because all the soil is loosened around the plant, and should bo compressed around it again with the hand before going on. Grass or weeds growing around the plants should also be ic-moved. ic-moved. Ilullctln. |