VII. SALAD PLANTS
Alexanders. Brook-lime. Buckshorn Plantain. Burnet. Caterpillar. Celery. Celeriac, or Turnip-rooted Celery. Chervil. Chiccory, or Succory. Corchorus. Corn Salad. Cress, or Peppergrass. Cuckoo Flower. Dandelion. Endive. Horse-radish. Lettuce. Madras Radish. Mallow, Curled-leaf. Mustard. Nasturtium. Garden Picridium. Purslain. Rape. Roquette, or Rocket. Samphire. Scurvy-grass. Snails. Sweet-scented Chervil, or Sweet Cicely. Tarragon. Valeriana. Water-cress. Winter-cress, or Yellow Rocket. Wood-sorrel. Worms.
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ALEXANDERS.
Alisanders. Smyrnium olusatrum.
A hardy, biennial plant, with foliage somewhat resembling that of Celery. Stem three to four feet high, much branched; radical leaves pale-green, compound,--those of the stem similar in form, but of smaller size. The branches of the plant terminate in large umbels, or spherical bunches of yellowish flowers; which are succeeded by roundish fruits, each of which contains two crescent-shaped seeds.
Sowing and Culture.--It thrives best in light, deep loam; and is raised from seed sown annually. Make the drills two and a half or three feet apart, and cover the seeds an inch deep. When the plants are two or three inches high, thin to twelve inches apart; or sow a few seeds in a nursery-bed, and transplant.
Blanching.--When the plants are well advanced, they should be gradually earthed up about the stems in the process of cultivation, in the manner of blanching Celery or Cardoons; like which, they are also gathered for use, and preserved during winter.
To raise Seed.--Leave a few plants unblanched; protect with stable-litter, or other convenient material, during winter; and they will flower, and produce an abundance of seeds, the following summer.
Use.--It was formerly much cultivated for its leaf-stalks; which, after being blanched, were used as a pot-herb and for salad. They have a pleasant, aromatic taste and odor; but the plant is now rarely grown, Celery being almost universally preferred.
PERFOLIATE ALEXANDERS.
Smyrnium perfoliatum.
A hardy, biennial species, from Italy; stem three feet in height, grooved or furrowed, hollow; leaves many times divided, and of a yellowish-green color; flowers, in terminal bunches, yellowish-white; seeds black, of the form of those of the common species, but smaller.
It is considered superior to the last named, as it not only blanches better, but is more crisp and tender, and not so harsh-flavored.
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BROOK-LIME.
American Brook-lime. Marsh Speedwell. Veronica beccabunga.
Brook-lime is a native of this country, but is also common to Great Britain. It is a hardy perennial, and grows naturally in ditches, and streams of water, but is rarely cultivated. The stem is from ten to fifteen inches in height, thick, smooth, and succulent, and sends out roots at the joints, by which the plant spreads and is propagated; the leaves are opposite, oval, smooth, and fleshy; the flowers are produced in long bunches, are of a fine blue color, and stand upon short stems,--they are more or less abundant during most of the summer, and are followed by heart-shaped seed-vessels, containing small, roundish seeds.
Cultivation.--It may be propagated by dividing the roots, and setting the plants in wet localities, according to their natural habit. It will thrive well when grown with Water-cress.
Use.--The whole plant is used as a salad, in the same manner and for the same purposes as Water-cress. It is considered an excellent anti-scorbutic.
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BUCKSHORN PLANTAIN.
Star of the Earth. Plantago coronopus.
A hardy annual, indigenous to Great Britain, France, and other countries of Europe. The root-leaves are put forth horizontally, and spread regularly about a common centre somewhat in the form of a rosette; the flower-stem is leafless, branching, and from eight to ten inches high; flowers yellow; the seeds are quite small, of a clear, brown color, and retain their power of germination three years,--nearly two hundred and thirty thousand are contained in an ounce.
Soil and Cultivation.--It succeeds best in a soil comparatively light; and the seed should be sown in April. Sow thinly, broadcast, or in shallow drills eight inches apart. When the plants are about an inch high, thin them to three or four inches apart.
Use.--The plant is cultivated for its leaves, which are used as a salad. They should be plucked while still young and tender, or when about half grown.
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BURNET. Mill.
Poterium sanguisorba.
Burnet is a hardy, perennial plant, indigenous to England, where it is found on dry, upland, chalky soils. When fully developed, it is from a foot and a half to two feet in height. The leaves proceeding directly from the root are produced on long stems, and are composed of from eleven to fifteen smaller leaves, which are of an oval form, regularly toothed, and generally, but not uniformly, smooth. The branches, which are somewhat numerous, terminate in long, slender stems, each of which produces an oval or roundish bunch of purplish-red, fertile and infertile flowers. The fertile flowers produce two seeds each, which ripen in August or September. These are oblong, four-sided, of a yellowish color, and retain their vitality two years. Thirty-five hundred are contained in an ounce.
Sowing and Culture.--The plant is easily propagated by seeds, which may be sown either in autumn or spring. Sow in drills ten inches apart, half or three-fourths of an inch deep; and thin, while the plants are young, to six or eight inches in the row. If the seeds are allowed to scatter from the plants in autumn, young seedlings will come up plentifully in the following spring, and may be transplanted to the distances before directed. In dry soil, the plants will continue for many years; requiring no further care than to be occasionally hoed, and kept free from weeds. It may also be propagated by dividing the roots; but, as it is easily grown from seeds, this method is not generally practised.
Use.--The leaves have a warm, piquant taste, and, when bruised, resemble cucumbers in odor. They are sometimes used as salad, and occasionally form an ingredient in soups. The roots, after being dried and pulverized, are employed in cases of internal hemorrhage.
It is very little used in this country, and rarely seen in gardens.
Varieties.--There are three varieties; the distinctions, however, being neither permanent nor important.
HAIRY-LEAVED BURNET.
Leaves and stems comparatively rough or hairy; in other respects, similar to the Smooth-leaved. Either of the varieties may be propagated by dividing the roots.
LARGE-SEEDED BURNET.
This, like the others, is a sub-variety, and probably but a seminal variation.
SMOOTH-LEAVED BURNET.
Leaves and stems of the plant comparatively smooth, but differing in no other particular from the Hairy-leaved. Seeds from this variety would probably produce plants answering to both descriptions.
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CATERPILLAR.
Chenille, of the French. Vil. Scorpiurus.
All of the species here described are hardy, annual plants, with creeping or recumbent stems, usually about two feet in length. The leaves are oblong, entire on the borders, broadest near the ends, and taper towards the stem; the flowers are yellow, and quite small; the seeds are produced in caterpillar-like pods, and retain their vitality five years.
Cultivation.--The seeds may be planted in the open ground in April or May; or the plants may be started in a hot-bed, and set out after settled warm weather. The rows should be fifteen inches apart, and the plants twelve or fifteen inches apart in the rows; or the plants may be grown in hills two feet and a half apart, and two or three plants allowed to a hill.
Use.--No part of the plant is eatable; but the pods, in their green state, are placed upon dishes of salads, where they so nearly resemble certain species of caterpillars as to completely deceive the uninitiated or inexperienced.
Species.--The species cultivated are the following; viz.:--
COMMON CATERPILLAR.
Chenille grosse. Vil. Scorpiurus vermiculata.
Pod, or fruit, comparatively large. The interior grooves, or furrows, are indistinct, or quite wanting: the exterior grooves are ten in number, and well defined. Along the summit of these furrows are produced numerous, small, pedicelled tubercles, quite similar to those of some species of worms or caterpillars; and these small tufts, in connection with the brownish-green color and peculiar coiling of the pods, make the resemblance nearly perfect, especially if seen from a short distance. The seeds are large, oblong, flattened at the ends, and of a yellowish color. A well-developed fruit will measure about three-eighths of an inch in diameter; and, when uncoiled, nearly an inch and a half in length.
FURROWED CATERPILLAR.
Chenille rayée. Vil. Scorpiurus sulcata.
Fruit rather slender, furrowed, grayish-green within the furrows, and brown along the summits. Four of the exterior furrows are surmounted with numerous small, obtuse, or rounded tubercles; and the pods are coiled in the manner peculiar to the class. The seeds resemble those of the Prickly Caterpillar, but are of larger size.
PRICKLY CATERPILLAR. Vil.
Small Caterpillar. Scorpiurus muricata.
Pod, or fruit, a fourth of an inch in diameter, curved or coiled; longitudinally furrowed, with numerous, small, erect, tufted points, regularly arranged along the surface. It is of a brownish-red color, with shades of green; and, when well grown, bears a remarkable resemblance to some species of hairy worms or caterpillars. The seeds are large, long, wrinkled, and of a yellowish color.
VILLOUS OR HAIRY CATERPILLAR.
Chenille velue. Vil. Scorpiurus subvillosa.
This species resembles the Prickly Caterpillar, but is a little larger. The most marked distinction, however, is in the small points, or tubercles, placed along the longitudinal ridges, which in this species are recurved, or bent at the tips. The seeds are larger than those of the foregoing species.
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CELERY.
Smallage. Apium graveolens.
Celery, or Smallage, is a hardy, umbelliferous, biennial plant, growing naturally "by the sides of ditches and near the sea, where it rises with wedge-shaped leaves and a furrowed stalk, producing greenish flowers in August." Under cultivation, the leaves are pinnatifid, with triangular leaflets; the leaf-stems are large, rounded, grooved, succulent, and solid or hollow according to the variety. The plant flowers during the second year, and then measures from two to three feet in height; the flowers are small, yellowish-white, and are produced in umbels, or flat, spreading groups, at the extremities of the branches; the seeds are small, somewhat triangular, of a yellowish-brown color, aromatic when bruised, and of a warm, pleasant flavor. They are said to retain their germinative powers ten years; but, by seedsmen, are not considered reliable when more than five years old. An ounce contains nearly seventy thousand seeds.
Soil.--Any good garden soil, in a fair state of cultivation, is adapted to the growth of Celery.
Propagation.--It is always propagated by seed; one-fourth of an ounce of which is sufficient for a seed-bed five feet wide and ten feet long. The first sowing is usually made in a hot-bed in March: and it may be sown in the open ground in April or May; but, when so treated, vegetates slowly, often remaining in the earth several weeks before it comes up. "A bushel or two of stable manure, put in a hole in the ground against a wall or any fence facing the south, and covered with a rich, fine mould three or four inches deep, will bring the seed up in two weeks." If this method is practised, sprinkle the seed thinly over the surface of the loam, stir the soil to the depth of half an inch, and press the earth flat and smooth with the back of a spade. Sufficient plants for any family may be started in a large flower-pot or two, placed in the sitting-room, giving them plenty of light and moisture.
Cultivation.--As soon as the young plants are about three inches high, prepare a small bed in the open air, and make the ground rich and the earth fine. Here set out the plants for a temporary growth, placing them four inches apart. This should be done carefully; and they should be gently watered once, and protected for a day or two against the sun. "A bed ten feet long and four feet wide will contain three hundred and sixty plants; and, if they be well cultivated, will more than supply the table of a common-sized family from October to May."
"In this bed the plants should remain till the beginning or middle of July, when they should be removed into trenches. Make the trenches a foot or fifteen inches deep and a foot wide, and not less than five feet apart. Lay the earth taken out of the trenches into the middle of the space between the trenches, so that it may not be washed into them by heavy rains; for it will, in such case, materially injure the crop by covering the hearts of the plants. At the bottom of the trench put some good, rich, but well-digested compost manure; for, if too fresh, the Celery will be rank and pipy, or hollow, and will not keep nearly so long or so well. Dig this manure in, and make the earth fine and light; then take up the plants from the temporary bed, and set them out carefully in the bottom of the trenches, six or eight inches apart."--Corb.
It is the practice of some cultivators, at the time of setting in the trenches, to remove all the suckers, to shorten the long roots, and to cut the leaves off, so that the whole plant shall be about six inches in length. But the best growers in England have abandoned this method, and now set the plants, roots and tops, entire.
Blanching.--"When the plants begin to grow (which they will quickly do), hoe on each side and between them with a small hoe. As they grow up, earth their stems; that is, put the earth up against them, but not too much at a time, and always when the plants are dry; and let the earth put up be finely broken, and not at all cloddy. While this is being done, keep the stalks of the outside leaves close up, to prevent the earth getting between the stems of the outside leaves and inner ones; for, if it gets there, it checks the plant, and makes the Celery bad. When the earthing is commenced, take first the edges of the trenches, working backwards, time after time, till the earth is reached that was taken from the trenches; and, by this time, the earth against the plants will be above the level of the land. Then take the earth out of the middle, till at last the earth against the plants forms a ridge; and the middle of each interval, a sort of gutter. Earth up very often, not putting up much at a time, every week a little; and by the last of September, or beginning of October, it will be blanched sufficient for use."--Corb.
Another (more recent) method of cultivation and blanching is to take the plants from the temporary bed, remove the suckers, and set them with the roots entire, ten inches apart in the trenches. They are then allowed to grow until they have attained nearly their full size, when the earth for blanching is more rapidly applied than in the previous method.
"Many plant on the surface,--that is, marking out the size of the bed on ground that has been previously trenched; digging in at least six or eight inches of rich, half-decayed manure, and planting either in single lines four feet apart, or making beds six feet broad, and planting across them, setting the rows fourteen inches apart, and the plants eight inches apart in the lines. They may be earthed up as they advance, or not, until they have attained the height of a foot."--M'Int.
M'Intosh gives the following method, practised by the Edinburgh market-gardeners: "Trenches, six feet wide and one foot deep, are dug out; the bottom is loosened and well enriched, and the plants set in rows across the bed, fourteen inches asunder, and the plants nine inches apart in the rows. By this means, space is economized, and the plants attain a fair average size and quality. The same plan is very often followed in private gardens; and, where the new and improved sorts are grown, they arrive at the size most available for family use. This is one of the best methods for amateurs to grow this crop. They should grow their plants in the temporary or nursery beds until they are ten inches or a foot high, before planting in the trenches; giving plenty of water, and afterwards earthing up once a fortnight."
Some allow the plants to make a natural growth, and earth up at once, about three weeks before being required for use. When so treated, the stalks are of remarkable whiteness, crisp, tender, and less liable to russet-brown spots than when the plants are blanched by the more common method.
Taking the Crop.--Before the closing-up of the ground, the principal part of the crop should be carefully taken up (retaining the roots and soil naturally adhering), and removed to the cellar; where they should be packed in moderately moist earth or sand, without covering the ends of the leaves.
A portion may be allowed to remain in the open ground; but the hearts of the plants must be protected from wet weather. This may be done by placing boards lengthwise, in the form of a roof, over the ridges. As soon as the frost leaves the ground in spring, or at any time during the winter when the weather will admit, Celery may be taken for use directly from the garden.
Seed.--Two or three plants will produce an abundance. They should be grown two feet apart, and may remain in the open ground during the winter. The seeds ripen in August.
Use.--The stems of the leaves are the parts of the plant used. These, after being blanched, are exceedingly crisp and tender, with an agreeable and peculiarly aromatic flavor. They are sometimes employed in soups; but are more generally served crude, with the addition of oil, mustard, and vinegar, or with salt only. The seeds have the taste and odor of the stems of the leaves, and are often used in their stead for flavoring soups.
With perhaps the exception of Lettuce, Celery is more generally used in this country than any other salad plant. It succeeds well throughout the Northern and Middle States; and, in the vicinity of some of our large cities, is produced of remarkable size and excellence.
Varieties.--
BOSTON-MARKET CELERY.
A medium-sized, white variety; hardy, crisp, succulent, and mild flavored. Compared with the White Solid, the stalks are more numerous, shorter, not so thick, and much finer in texture. It blanches quickly, and is recommended for its hardiness and crispness; the stalks rarely becoming stringy or fibrous, even at an advanced stage of growth. Much grown by market-gardeners in the vicinity of Boston, Mass.
COLE'S SUPERB RED. M'Int.
This is comparatively a new sort, of much excellence, and of remarkable solidity. It is not of large size, but well adapted for cultivation in the kitchen-garden and for family use; not so well suited for marketing or for exhibition purposes. It has the valuable property of not piping or becoming hollow or stringy, and remains long without running to seed. The leaf-stalks are of a fine purple color, tender, crisp, and fine flavored. A well-grown plant will weigh about six pounds.
COLE'S SUPERB WHITE.
Much like Cole's Superb Red; differing little, except in color. An excellent sort, hardy, runs late to seed, and is one of the most crisp and tender of the white sorts. Stalks short and thick.
DWARF CURLED WHITE.
Céleri Nain frisé. Vil.
Leaves dark-green, curled, resembling those of Parsley, and, like it, might be employed for garnishing. Leaf-stalks rounded and grooved, comparatively crisp and solid, but not fine flavored. It is quite hardy, and, in moderate winters, will remain in the open ground without injury, and serve for soups in spring. Its fine, curled foliage, however, is its greatest recommendation.
EARLY DWARF SOLID WHITE. Thomp.
Céleri plein, blanc, court, hâtif. Vil.
Rather dwarf, but thick-stemmed. The heart is remarkably full; the leaf-stalk solid, blanching promptly. There is, in fact, much more finely blanched substance in a plant of this variety than in one of the tall sorts, and the quality is excellent. It comes into use rather early, and is one of the hardiest of the White varieties.
ITALIAN CELERY. Thomp.
Large Upright. Giant Patagonian.
A tall, strong-growing, erect sort; leaf-stems deeply furrowed, sometimes a little hollow; leaves large, deep-green, with coarse, obtuse serratures. It is not so crisp as the Common White Solid; and is suitable only for soups, or where very tall Celery is desirable.
LAING'S IMPROVED MAMMOTH RED CELERY.
This is considered the largest variety yet produced; specimens having attained, in England, the extraordinary weight of eight or ten pounds, and at the same time perfectly solid. It is nearly perennial in its habit, as it will not run to seed the first year; and is with difficulty started to blossom even during the second, when planted out for the purpose. Color bright-red; flavor unsurpassed, if equalled.
MANCHESTER RED CELERY. Thomp.
Manchester Red Giant.
This variety scarcely differs from the Red Solid. It has, however, a coarser habit, with a somewhat rounder stalk; and, this being the case, the heart is not so compact. It is grown largely for marketing, and is excellent for soups and stewing.
NUTT'S CHAMPION WHITE CELERY. M'Int.
Originated with Mr. Nutt, of Sheffield.
It attains, under good management, in good soil, a large size, and, this considered, is of excellent quality; very white, and not apt to run to seed.
RED SOLID. Thomp.
New Large Red. New Large Purple. Tours Purple. Céleri violet de Tours.
The plant grows to a large size, full-hearted, with a thick stem. Leaf-stalks thick, deeply furrowed, and very solid, of a dark-red or purplish hue where exposed, rose-colored where partially blanched; but the perfectly blanched portion is pure white, more so than the blanched part of the White varieties of Celery. It is also crisp, of excellent flavor, and unquestionably the best variety of Red Celery.
SEYMOUR'S SUPERB WHITE. Thomp.
Seymour's Superb White Solid.
A large-sized, vigorous-growing variety; in good soils, often attaining a height of nearly three feet. The stalks are solid; flat at the base, where they overlap, and form a compact, crisp, and, with ordinary care, a well-blanched heart of excellent quality. It succeeds best, as most other sorts do, in rich, moist soil; and when so grown, and properly blanched, will yield a large proportion of Celery, of a pure white color, and of the best quality.
It is one of the best sorts for extensive culture for the markets, as it is also one of the best varieties for small gardens for family use. It blanches readily; and, with little care, will supply the table, from the last of September, through most of the winter.
SEYMOUR'S WHITE CHAMPION.
A variety represented as being superior to Seymour's Superb White. The stalks are broad, flat at the base, and form a compact, well-blanched, crisp heart.
SHEPHERD'S RED. Thomp.
Shepherd's Giant Red.
Much like the Manchester Red, but has flatter stems: consequently, it is more compact, and blanches sooner and more perfectly, than that variety; to which, for these reasons, it is preferred by growers for competition.
SMALL DUTCH CELERY.
Céleri à couper. Vil.
Leaf-stems small, hollow, crisp, and succulent; sprouts, or suckers, abundant. It is seldom blanched; but the leaves are sometimes used for flavoring soups.
The seeds should be sown thickly, and on level beds. The plants often resprout after being cut. Not much cultivated.
SUTTON'S WHITE SOLID. M'Int.
A very large yet solid-growing variety, exceedingly white and crisp.
TURKEY OR PRUSSIAN CELERY.
Giant White. Céleri turc. Vil. Turkish Giant Solid.
A remarkably large variety, resembling the Common White Solid. Leaf-stalks long, large, erect, fleshy, and solid; leaves large, with rounded serratures, and of a glossy-green color.
It is one of the largest of the White sorts, and is considered superior to the Common White Solid.
WALL'S WHITE CELERY. Thomp.
An improved variety of the Italian, esteemed by growers for competition, where quantity, not quality, is the principal consideration.
WHITE LION'S-PAW CELERY. M'Int.
Lion's-paw.
A short, broad, flat-stalked variety, of excellent quality; crisp and white. Its short, flat, spreading habit gave rise to its name.
WHITE SOLID. Thomp.
Céleri plein, blanc. Vil. Fine White Solid.
This variety is of strong and rather tall growth; leaf-stalks generally solid, but when grown in rich, highly manured soil, they sometimes become slightly hollow; leaves large, smooth, bright-green; serratures large and obtuse. It blanches readily, is crisp, of excellent quality, and comes into use earlier than the Red sorts. It is generally cultivated in the Northern States, not only on account of its hardiness, but for its keeping qualities. As a market variety, it is one of the best.
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CELERIAC, OR TURNIP-ROOTED CELERY.
This variety forms at the base of the leaves, near the surface of the ground, a brownish, irregular, rounded root, or tuber, measuring from three to four inches in diameter. The leaves are small, with slender, hollow stems. In favorable exposures and rich soil, the roots sometimes attain a weight of more than three pounds. It is much hardier than the common varieties of Celery.
Propagation.--It is propagated from seeds, which may be sown in the open ground in April or May, in shallow drills six or eight inches apart. "When the young plants are three inches high, they should be removed, and set on the surface (not in trenches), in moderately enriched soil. They should be set in rows eighteen inches apart, and a foot from each other in the line. At the time of transplanting, all of the small suckers, or side-shoots, should be rubbed off,--a precaution to be kept in view throughout its growth,--as the energies of the whole plant ought to be directed to the formation of the bulb-like root."--M'Int.
Subsequent Cultivation.--The growing crop will require no peculiar treatment. When the bulbs are two-thirds grown, they are earthed over for the purpose of blanching, and to render the flesh crisp and tender. Cool and humid seasons are the most favorable to their growth. In warm and dry weather, the bulbs are small, comparatively tough, and strong flavored.
Taking the Crop.--Some of the bulbs will be ready for use in September; from which time, till the last of November, the table may be supplied directly from the garden. Before severe weather, the quantity required for winter should be drawn, packed in damp earth or sand, and stored in the cellar.
To save Seed.--Give to a few plants, taken up in the autumn, as much light and air as possible during the winter, keeping them cool, but not allowing them to freeze; and, in April, set them in the open ground, eighteen inches apart. The seed will ripen the last of the season. It is often used in the manner of the seed of the Common Celery for seasoning soups.
Use.--The root, or bulb, is the part of the plant eaten: the flesh of this is white, and comparatively tender, with the flavor of the stalks of Common Celery, though generally less mild and delicate. It is principally valued for its remarkable hardiness and for its keeping properties. Where the common varieties of Celery are grown or preserved with difficulty, this might be successfully grown, and afford a tolerable substitute. The bulbs are sometimes eaten boiled, and the leaves are occasionally used in soups.
CURLED-LEAVED CELERIAC.
Curled-leaved Turnip-rooted. Céleri-rave frisé. Vil.
This is a variety of the Common Celeriac, or Turnip-rooted Celery; like which, it forms a sort of bulb, or knob, near the surface of the ground. It is, however, of smaller size; usually measuring about three inches in diameter. The skin is brown, and the flesh white and fine-grained; leaves small, spreading, curled.
It is in no respect superior to the Common Turnip-rooted, and possesses little merit aside from the peculiarity of its foliage. Cultivate, preserve during winter, and use as directed for the common variety.
EARLY ERFURT CELERIAC.
Céleri-rave d'Erfurt. Vil.
A very early variety. Root, or bulb, not large, but regular in form. Its earliness is its principal merit.
CHERVIL.
Chærophyllum cerefolium. Common or Plain-leaved.
A hardy, annual plant, from the south of Europe. Stem eighteen inches to two feet in height; the leaves are many times divided, and are similar to those of the Common Plain Parsley; the flowers are small, white, and produced in umbels at the extremities of the branches; the seeds are black, long, pointed, longitudinally grooved, and retain their vitality but two years,--nearly nine thousand are contained in an ounce.
"This is the most common sort; but, except that it is hardier than the Curled varieties, is not worthy of cultivation."
CURLED CHERVIL. M'Int.
A variety of the Common Chervil, with frilled or curled leaves; the distinction between the sorts being nearly the same as that between the Plain-leaved and Curled-leaved varieties of Parsley. The foliage is delicately and beautifully frilled; and, on this account, is much employed for garnishing, as well as for the ordinary purposes for which the plain sort is used.
Being a larger grower, it requires more room for its development; and the plants should stand a foot apart each way. When intended for winter use, it should have the protection of hand-glasses, frames, or branches of trees placed thickly around or amongst it. In very unfavorable situations, it is well to pot a dozen or two plants, and shelter them under glass during the winter.
FRIZZLED-LEAVED OR FRENCH CHERVIL. M'Int.
Double-curled. Cerfeuil frisé. Vil.
An improved variety of the Curled Chervil,--even more beautiful; but wanting in hardiness. It succeeds best when grown in the summer months.
Propagation and Cultivation.--Chervil is raised from seeds; and, where it is much used, sowings should be made, at intervals of three or four weeks, from April till July. The seeds should be sown thinly, in drills a foot apart, and covered nearly an inch in depth.
Use.--It is cultivated for its leaves, which have a pleasant, aromatic taste; and, while young and tender, are employed for flavoring soups and salads.
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CHICCORY, OR SUCCORY.
Wild Endive. Cichorium intybus.
A hardy, perennial plant, introduced into this country from Europe, and often abounding as a troublesome weed in pastures, lawns, and mowing-lands. The stem is erect, stout, and branching, and, in its native state, usually about three feet in height,--under cultivation, however, it sometimes attains a height of five or six feet; the radical leaves are deep-green, lobed, and, when grown in good soil, measure ten or twelve inches in length, and four inches in width; the flowers are large, axillary, nearly stemless, of a fine blue color, and generally produced in pairs; the seeds somewhat resemble those of Endive, though ordinarily smaller, more glossy, and of a deeper-brown color,--they will keep ten years. The plants continue in blossom from July to September; and the seeds ripen from August to October, or until the plants are destroyed by frost.
Soil, Sowing, and Cultivation.--As the roots of Chiccory are long and tapering, it should be cultivated in rich, mellow soil, thoroughly stirred, either by the plough or spade, to the depth of ten or twelve inches. The seed should be sown in April or May, in drills fifteen inches apart, and three-fourths of an inch deep. When the young plants are two or three inches high, thin them to eight inches apart in the rows; and, during the summer, cultivate frequently, to keep the soil light, and the growing crop free from weeds.
Blanching.--Before using as a salad, the plants are blanched, either by covering with boxes a foot in depth, or by strips of boards twelve or fourteen inches wide, nailed together at right angles, and placed lengthwise over the rows. They are sometimes blanched by covering with earth; the leaves being first gathered together, and tied loosely at the top, which should be left exposed to light.
To save Seed.--In the autumn, leave a few of the best plants unblanched; let them be about eighteen inches asunder. Protect with stable litter; or, if in a sheltered situation, leave them unprotected during winter, and they will yield abundantly the ensuing summer.
Taking the Crop.--When the leaves are properly blanched, they will be of a delicate, creamy white. When they are about a foot high, they will be ready for use; and, as soon as they are cut, the roots should be removed, and others brought forward to succeed them. "In cutting, take off the leaves with a thin slice of the crown, to keep them together, as in cutting sea-kale. When washed, and tied up in small bundles of a handful each, they are fit for dressing."--M'Int.
Use.--It is used as Endive; its flavor and properties being much the same. Though rarely grown in this country, it is common to the gardens of many parts of Europe, and is much esteemed. The blanched leaves are known as Barbe de Capucin, or "Friar's Beard."
Varieties.--
IMPROVED CHICCORY, OR SUCCORY.
Chicorée sauvage améliorée. Vil.
Leaves larger than those of the Common Chiccory, and produced more compactly; forming a sort of head, or solid heart, like some of the Endives. The plant is sometimes boiled and served in the manner of Spinach.
VARIEGATED OR SPOTTED CHICCORY. Vil.
This is a variety of the preceding, distinguished by the color of the leaves, which are veined, and streaked with red. In blanching, the red is not changed, but retains its brilliancy; while the green becomes nearly pure white,--the two colors blending in rich contrast. In this state they form a beautiful, as well as tender and well-flavored, salad.
IMPROVED VARIEGATED CHICCORY. Vil.
A sub-variety of the Spotted Chiccory, more constant in its character, and more uniform and distinct in its stripes and variegations. When blanched, it makes an exceedingly delicate and beautiful garnish, and a tender and excellent salad.
Either of the improved sorts are as hardy, and blanch as readily, as the Common Chiccory.
LARGE-ROOTED OR COFFEE CHICCORY.
Turnip-rooted Chiccory.
This variety is distinguished by its long, fleshy roots, which are sometimes fusiform, but generally much branched or divided: when well grown, they are twelve or fourteen inches in length, and about an inch in their largest diameter. The leaves have the form of those of the Common Chiccory, but are larger, and more luxuriant.
Though the variety is generally cultivated for its roots, the leaves, when blanched, afford a salad even superior to some of the improved sorts before described.
Vilmorin mentions two sub-varieties of the Large-rooted or Coffee Chiccory; viz.:--
BRUNSWICK LARGE-ROOTED.
Roots shorter than those of the Magdebourg, but of greater diameter; leaves spreading.
MAGDEBOURG LARGE-ROOTED.
Roots long, and comparatively large; leaves erect.
After several years' trial, preference was given to this variety, which proved the more productive.
Sowing and Cultivation.--For raising Coffee Chiccory, the ground should first be well enriched, and then deeply and thoroughly stirred by spading or ploughing. The seeds should be sown in April or May, in shallow drills a foot apart, and the young plants thinned to three or four inches apart in the rows. Hoe frequently; water, if the weather is dry; and in the autumn, when the roots have attained sufficient size, draw them for use. After being properly cleaned, cut them into small pieces, dry them thoroughly in a kiln or spent oven, and store for use or the market. After being roasted and ground, Chiccory is mixed with coffee in various proportions, and thus forms a pleasant beverage; or, if used alone, will be found a tolerable substitute for genuine coffee.
The roots of any of the before-described varieties may be used in the same manner; but as they are much smaller, and consequently less productive, are seldom cultivated for the purpose.
It is an article of considerable commercial importance; large quantities being annually imported from the south of Europe to different seaports of the United States. As the plant is perfectly hardy, of easy culture, and quite productive, there appears to be no reason why the home demand for the article may not be supplied by home production. Of its perfect adaptedness to the soil and climate of almost any section of this country, there can scarcely be a doubt.
* * * * *
CORCHORUS.
Corette potagère, of the French. Corchorus olitorius.
An annual plant from Africa; also indigenous to the West Indies. Stem about two feet high, much branched; leaves deep-green, slightly toothed, varying in a remarkable degree in their size and form,--some being spear-shaped, others oval, and some nearly heart-shaped; leaf-stems long and slender; flowers nearly sessile, small, yellow, five-petaled; seeds angular, pointed, and of a greenish color,--fourteen thousand are contained in an ounce, and they retain their vitality four years.
Soil, Propagation, and Culture.--The plant requires a light, warm soil; and should have a sheltered, sunny place in the garden. It is grown from seed sown annually. The sowing may be made in March in a hot-bed, and the plants set in the open ground in May; or the seed may be sown the last of April, or first of May, in the place where the plants are to remain. The drills, or rows, should be fifteen inches apart, and the plants five or six inches apart in the rows. No further attention will be required, except the ordinary labor of keeping the soil loose and the plants clear from weeds.
Use.--The leaves are eaten as a salad, and are also boiled and served at table in the form of greens or spinach. They may be cut as soon as they have reached a height of five or six inches.
* * * * *
CORN SALAD.
Fetticus. Lamb's Lettuce. Mâche, of the French. Valeriana locusta.
This is a small, hardy, annual plant, said to derive its name from its spontaneous growth, in fields of wheat, in England. It is also indigenous to France and the south of Europe.
When in flower, or fully grown, it is from twelve to fifteen inches in height. The flowers are small, pale-blue; the seeds are rather small, of a yellowish-brown color, unequally divided by two shallow, lengthwise grooves, and will keep six or eight years.
Soil and Culture.--It is always grown from seed, and flourishes best in good vegetable loam, but will grow in any tolerably enriched garden soil. Early in April, prepare a bed four feet wide, and of a length according to the quantity of salad required; having regard to the fact, that it is better to sow only a small quantity at a time. Rake the surface of the bed even, make the rows across the bed about eight inches apart, sow the seed rather thinly, and cover about one-fourth of an inch deep with fine, moist soil. If dry weather occurs after sowing, give the bed a good supply of water. When the young plants are two inches high, thin them to four inches apart, and cut or draw for use as soon as the leaves have attained a suitable size.
As the peculiar value of Corn Salad lies in its remarkable hardiness, a sowing should be made the last of August or beginning of September, for use during the winter or early in spring; but, if the weather is severe, the plants must be protected by straw or some other convenient material. Early in March, or as soon as the weather becomes a little mild, remove the covering, and the plants will keep the table supplied until the leaves from fresh sowings shall be grown sufficiently for cutting.
Seed.--To raise seed, allow a few plants from the spring sowing to remain without cutting. They will grow up to the height and in the manner before described, and blossom, and ripen their seed during the summer. An ounce of seed will sow a row two hundred feet in length, and about five pounds will be required for an acre.
Use.--The leaves, while young, are used as a salad; and in winter, or early in spring, are considered excellent. They are also sometimes boiled and served as Spinach.
Varieties.--
COMMON CORN SALAD.
Root-leaves rounded at the ends, smooth, three or four inches long by about an inch in width. The younger the plants are when used, the more agreeable will be their flavor.
LARGE ROUND-LEAVED.
Leaves larger, of a deeper green, thicker, and more succulent, than those of the foregoing variety. It is the best sort for cultivation. The leaves are most tender, and should be cut for use while young and small.
LARGE-SEEDED ROUND. Vil.
This is a sub-variety of the Large Round, and is much cultivated in Germany and Holland. The leaves are longer, narrower, and thinner, and more tender when eaten; but the Large Round is preferred by gardeners for marketing, as it bears transportation better. The seeds are about twice as large.
ITALIAN CORN SALAD. Vil.
Valerianella eriocarpa.
The Italian Corn Salad is a distinct species, and differs from the Common Corn Salad in its foliage, and, to some extent, in its general habit. It is a hardy annual, about eighteen inches high. The radical leaves are pale-green, large, thick, and fleshy,--those of the stalk long, narrow, and pointed; the flowers are small, pale-blue, washed or stained with red; the seeds are of a light-brown color, somewhat compressed, convex on one side, hollowed on the opposite, and retain their vitality five years,--nearly twenty-two thousand are contained in an ounce.
It is cultivated and used in the same manner as the species before described. It is, however, earlier, milder in flavor, and slower in running to seed. The leaves are sometimes employed early in spring as a substitute for Spinach; but their downy or hairy character renders them less valuable for salad purposes than those of some of the varieties of the Common Corn Salad.
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CRESS, OR PEPPERGRASS.
Lepidium sativum.
The Common Cress of the garden is a hardy annual, and a native of Persia. When in flower, the stem of the plant is smooth and branching, and about fifteen inches high. The leaves are variously divided, and are plain or curled, according to the variety; the flowers are white, very small, and produced in groups, or bunches; seeds small, oblong, rounded, of a reddish-brown color, and of a peculiar, pungent odor,--about fourteen thousand are contained in an ounce, and they retain their germinative properties five years.
Soil and Cultivation.--Cress will flourish in any fair garden soil, and is always best when grown early or late in the season. The seed vegetates quickly, and the plants grow rapidly. As they are milder and more tender while young, the seed should be sown in succession, at intervals of about a fortnight; making the first sowing early in April. Rake the surface of the ground fine and smooth, and sow the seed rather thickly, in shallow drills six or eight inches apart. Half an ounce of seed will be sufficient for thirty feet of drill.
To raise Seed.--Leave a dozen strong plants of the first sowing uncut. They will ripen their seed in August, and yield a quantity sufficient for the supply of a garden of ordinary size.
Use.--The leaves, while young, have a warm, pungent taste; and are eaten as a salad, either separately, or mixed with lettuce or other salad plants. The leaves should be cut or plucked before the plant has run to flower, as they then become acrid and unpalatable. The curled varieties are also used for garnishing.
BROAD-LEAVED CRESS.
A coarse variety, with broad, spatulate leaves. It is sometimes grown for feeding poultry, and is also used for soups; but it is less desirable as a salad than most of the other sorts.
COMMON OR PLAIN-LEAVED CRESS.
This is the variety most generally cultivated. It has plain leaves, and consequently is not so desirable a sort for garnishing. As a salad kind, it is tender and delicate, and considered equal, if not superior, to the Curled varieties.
CURLED CRESS.
Garnishing Cress.
Leaves larger than those of the common plain variety, of a fine green color, and frilled and curled on the borders in the manner of some kinds of Parsley. It is used as a salad, and is also employed as a garnish. It is very liable to degenerate by becoming gradually less curled. To keep the variety pure, select only the finest curled plants for seed.
GOLDEN CRESS. Trans.
This variety is of slower growth than the Common Cress. The leaves are of a yellowish-green, flat, oblong, scalloped on the borders, sometimes entire, and of a much thinner texture than any of the varieties of the Common Cress. It is very dwarf; and is consequently short, when cut as a salad-herb for use. It has a mild and delicate flavor. When run to flower, it does not exceed eighteen inches in height.
It deserves more general cultivation, as affording a pleasant addition to the varieties of small salads.
The seeds are of a paler color, or more yellow, than those of the other sorts.
NORMANDY CURLED CRESS. M'int.
A very excellent variety, introduced by Mr. Charles M'Intosh, and described as being hardier than the other kinds, and therefore better adapted for sowing early in spring or late in summer.
The leaves are finely cut and curled, and make not only a good salad, but a beautiful garnish. The seed should be sown thinly, in good soil, in drills six inches apart. In gathering, instead of cutting the plants over, the leaves should be picked off singly. After this operation, fresh leaves are soon put forth.
It is difficult to procure the seed true; the Common Curled being, in general, substituted for it.
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CUCKOO FLOWER.
Small Water-cress. Cardamine pratensis.
A hardy, perennial plant, introduced from Europe, and naturalized to a limited extent in some of the Northern States. Stem about fifteen inches high, erect, smooth; leaves deeply divided,--the divisions of the radical or root leaves rounded, those of the stalk long, narrow, and pointed; the flowers are comparatively large, white, or rose-colored, and produced in erect, terminal clusters; the seeds are of a brown color, small, oblong, shortened on one side, rounded on the opposite, and retain their vegetating powers four years,--nearly thirty thousand are contained in an ounce.
Soil.--It succeeds best in moist, loamy soil; and should have a shady situation.
Propagation and Cultivation.--It may be propagated from seeds, or by a division of the roots. The seeds are sown in April or May, in shallow drills a foot asunder. The roots may be divided in spring or autumn.
Use.--The leaves have the warm, pungent taste common to the Cress family; and are used in their young state, like Cress, as a salad. Medically, they have the reputation of being highly antiscorbutic and of aiding digestion. There are four varieties:--
White Flowering.--A variety with white, single flowers.
Purple Flowering.--Flowers purple, single. Either of these varieties may be propagated from seeds, or by a division of the roots.
Double Flowering White.--Flowers white, double.
Double Flowering Purple.--A double variety, with purple blossoms. These varieties are propagated by a division of the roots. Double-flowering plants are rarely produced from seeds.
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THE DANDELION.
Leontodon taraxacum.
The Dandelion, though spontaneously abundant, is not a native of this country. Introduced from Europe, it has become extensively naturalized, abounding in gardens, on lawns, about cultivated lands; and, in May and June, often, of itself alone, constituting no inconsiderable portion of the herbage of rich pastures and mowing-fields.
It is a hardy, perennial plant, with an irregular, branching, brownish root. The leaves are all radical, long, runcinate, or deeply and sharply toothed; the flower-stem is from six to twelve inches and upwards in height, leafless, and produces at its top a large, yellow, solitary blossom; the seeds are small, oblong, of a brownish color, and will keep three years.
Soil and Cultivation.--Although the Dandelion will thrive in almost any description of soil, it nevertheless produces much the largest, most tender, and best-flavored leaves, as well as the greatest crop of root, when grown in mellow, well-enriched ground. Before sowing, stir the soil, either by the spade or plough, deeply and thoroughly; smooth off the surface fine and even; and sow the seeds in drills half an inch deep, and twelve or fifteen inches apart. If cultivated for spring greens, or for blanching for salad, the seed must be sown in May or June. In July, thin out the young plants to two or three inches apart; cultivate during the season in the usual form of cultivating other garden productions; and, in April and May of the ensuing spring, the plants will be fit for the table.
For very early use, select a portion of the bed equal to the supply required; and, in November, spread it rather thickly over with coarse stable-manure. About the beginning of February, remove the litter, and place boards or planks on four sides, of a square or parallelogram, in the manner of a common hot-bed, providing for a due inclination towards the south. Over these put frames of glass, as usually provided for hot-beds; adding extra protection by covering with straw or other material in intensely cold weather. Thus treated, the plants will be ready for cutting two or three weeks earlier than those in the open ground.
When grown for its roots, the ground must be prepared in the manner before directed; and the seeds should be sown in October, in drills fourteen or fifteen inches asunder. In June following, thin out the young plants to two or three inches apart; keep the ground loose, and free from weeds, during the summer; and, in October, the roots will have attained their full size, and be ready for harvesting, which is usually performed with a common subsoil plough. After being drawn, they are washed entirely clean, sliced, and dried in the shade; when they are ready for the market.
Use.--The Dandelion resembles Endive, and affords one of the earliest, as well as one of the best and most healthful, of spring greens. "The French use it bleached, as a salad; and if large, and well bleached, it is better than Endive, much more tender, and of finer flavor." The roots, after being dried as before directed, constitute an article of considerable commercial importance; being extensively employed as a substitute for, or mixed in various proportions with, coffee.
It may be grown for greens at trifling cost; and a bed twelve or fourteen feet square will afford a family an abundant supply.
Under cultivation, and even in its natural state, the leaves of different plants vary in a marked degree from each other, not only in size, and manner of growth, but also in form. Judicious and careful cultivation would give a degree of permanency to these distinctions; and varieties might undoubtedly be produced, well adapted for the various purposes for which the plant is grown, whether for the roots, for blanching, or for greens.
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ENDIVE.
Chicorium endivia.
Endive is a hardy annual, said to be a native of China and Japan. When fully developed, it is from four to six feet in height. The leaves are smooth, and lobed and cut upon the borders more or less deeply, according to the variety; the flowers are usually of a blue color, and rest closely in the axils of the leaves; the seeds are small, long, angular, and of a grayish color; their germinative properties are retained for ten years; nearly twenty-five thousand are contained in an ounce.
Soil.--All of the varieties thrive well in any good, mellow garden soil. Where there is a choice of situations, select one in which the plants will be the least exposed to the effects of drought and heat.
Propagation.--The plants can be raised only from seed. This may be sown where the plants are to remain; or it may be sown broadcast, or in close drills in a nursery-bed for transplanting. If sown where the plants are to remain, sow thinly in shallow drills a foot apart for the smaller, curled varieties, and fifteen inches for the larger, broad-leaved sorts. Thin out the plants to a foot asunder as soon as they are large enough to handle, and keep the ground about them, as well as between the rows, loose, and free from weeds, by repeated hoeings. If required, the plants taken out in thinning may be reset in rows at the same distances apart.
If sown in a nursery-bed, transplant when the young plants have eight or ten leaves; setting them at the distances before directed. This should be done at morning or evening; and the plants should afterwards be watered and shaded for a few days, until they are well established.
The first sowing may be made as early in spring as the weather will permit; and a sowing may be made a month or six weeks after, for a succession: but as it is for use late in autumn, or during the winter and spring, that Endive is most required, the later sowings are the most important. These are usually made towards the end of July.
Blanching.--Before using, the plants must be blanched; which is performed in various ways. The common method is as follows: When the root-leaves have nearly attained their full size, they are taken when entirely dry, gathered together into a conical form, or point, at the top, and tied together with matting, or any other soft, fibrous material; by which means, the large, outer leaves are made to blanch the more tender ones towards the heart of the plant.
After being tied in this manner, the plants are sometimes blanched by earthing, as practised with Celery or Cardoons. This process is recommended for dry and warm seasons: but in cold, wet weather, they are liable to decay at the heart; and blanching-pots, or, in the absence of these, common flower-pots, inverted over the plants, will be found a safe and effectual means of rendering them white, crisp, and mild flavored.
"Some practise setting two narrow boards along each side of the row; bringing them together at the top in the form of a triangle, and afterwards drawing earth over them to keep them steady. Some cover the dwarfish sorts with half-decayed leaves, dry tanner's bark, sand, coal-ashes, and even sawdust; but all of these methods are inferior to the blanch-pot or the tying-up process."
Time required for Blanching.--In summer weather, when vegetation is active, the plants will blanch in ten days; but in cool weather, when the plants have nearly attained their growth or are slowly developing, three weeks will be required to perfect the operation.
Harvesting, and Preservation during Winter.--"Before frost sets in, they must be tied up in a conical form, as before directed; and all dead or yellow leaves must be taken off. Then take them up with a ball of soil to each, and put them into light earth in a cellar or some warm building. Put only the roots into the earth. Do not suffer the plants to touch each other; and pour a little water round the roots after they are placed in the earth. If they are perfectly dry when tied up, they will keep till spring."--Corb.
Seed.--Two or three vigorous plants, left unblanched, will yield sufficient to supply a garden of ordinary size for years. Half an ounce will sow a seed-bed of forty square feet.
Use.--"The leaves are the parts used, and these only when blanched to diminish their natural bitterness of taste. It is one of the best autumn, winter, and spring salads."--M'Int.
Varieties.--The descriptions of many of the varieties have been prepared from an interesting paper read before the London Horticultural Society by Mr. Matthews, clerk of the society's garden.
The different sorts are divided into two classes,--the "Batavian" and the "Curled-leaved."
BATAVIAN ENDIVES.
Under the Batavian Endives are included all the varieties with broad leaves, generally rounded at the points, with the margin slightly ragged or torn, but not curled. These are called, by the French, Scarolles. As most of the sorts require more room than the Curled-leaved kinds, the rows should be about fourteen inches apart, and the plants thinned out from nine to twelve inches in the rows.
BROAD-LEAVED BATAVIAN ENDIVE.
Common Yellow Endive, of the Dutch.
Leaves yellowish-green, large, long and broad, thick and fleshy, the edges slightly ragged: when fully grown, they are about ten inches long, and an inch wide at the base; increasing regularly in width towards the end, and measuring five or six inches in diameter at the broadest part. The leaves of the centre of the plant are of the same form, but shorter, and much paler. The plants form but little heart of themselves; but the length of the outer leaves is such, that they tie up well for blanching. In quality, as well as in appearance, it is inferior to the Curled sorts; and its flavor is not so mild and agreeable as that of some of the other kinds of Batavian endives.
CURLED BATAVIAN ENDIVE. Thomp.
The leaves of this variety are neither so large nor so broad as those of the Broad-leaved Batavian Endive: they grow flat on the ground, and are curled at their edges. The whole appearance of the plant is very different from the Common Broad-leaved; approaching the Curled endives, in general character. The heart, which forms of itself, is small, and lies close to the ground.
The plants require twelve or fourteen inches' space between the rows, and eight or ten inches in the row.
LARGE BATAVIAN ENDIVE.
Scarolle grande, of the French.
This differs from the Small Batavian Endive in the size and shape of its leaves, which are broader and more rounded: they are a little darker, but yet pale. The inner ones are turned over like the small variety, though not so regularly; but form a large, well-blanched heart, of good flavor. This and the Small Batavian will blanch perfectly if a mat is laid over them, and do not require to be tied up. Both the Small and the Large sorts are considered hardier than the Curled varieties.
LETTUCE-LEAVED OR WHITE BATAVIAN ENDIVE.
Scarolle blonde. Vil.
Leaves broad and large, obtuse, ragged at the edges, of a paler color and thinner texture than either of the other Batavian sorts; the exterior leaves are spreading, fourteen inches long, two inches wide at the base, and, growing regularly broader to the end, measure six or seven inches in diameter at the widest part; the central leaves are short, and the head is less compact than that of the Common Broad-leaved; the seeds are of a paler color than those of the Green Curled Endive.
To blanch it, the leaves must be tied up; and it should be grown for summer use, as it is comparatively tender, and will not endure severe weather. It is best if used while young; for, when fully developed, the leaves are not tender, and, if not well blanched, are liable to have a slightly bitter taste.
Sow in May or June, in rows fifteen inches apart, and thin to a foot in the rows; or transplant, giving the plants the same space.
SMALL BATAVIAN ENDIVE.
Scarolle courte, of the French.
Leaves whitish-green, broad, of moderate length, and slightly cut at the edges. The inner leaves are numerous, and turn over like a hood at the end; forming a larger head than any of the other kinds. It is one of the best of the endives, and a valuable addition to our winter salads. It blanches with little trouble; and is mild and sweet, without being bitter.
CURLED ENDIVES.
Curled endives are those with narrow leaves, more or less divided, and much curled. They are usually full in the heart. The French call them, by way of distinction, Chicorées.
DUTCH GREEN CURLED ENDIVE.
This approaches the Large Green Curled Endive in appearance and growth; but the divisions of the leaves are deeper, the outer leaves are broader, not so much curled, and the inner ones more turned into the heart: the outer leaves are about ten inches long. It blanches well, and is hardy.
GREEN CURLED ENDIVE.
Small Green Curled Endive.
Leaves six or seven inches long, finely cut, and beautifully curled; the outer leaves lying close to the ground, the inner ones thickly set, forming a compact heart. Easily blanched, very hardy, and well adapted for winter use. The leaves are longer, and of a darker-green color, than those of the Green Curled Summer Endive, and will tie up much better for blanching. It is a fortnight later.
Sow in rows a foot or fourteen inches apart, and thin to six or eight inches in the row.
It may be quickly blanched by simply covering the plant with a deep flower-pot saucer. In summer, while the plants are growing vigorously, the process will be completed in about a week: later in the season, two-weeks, or even more, may be necessary.
GREEN CURLED SUMMER ENDIVE.
Leaves not quite so large as those of the Green Curled; finely and deeply cut: the outer ones are five or six inches long, and grow close to the ground; the inner are short, numerous, curled, and form a close, full heart. It is much the smallest of any of the kinds, and is somewhat tender. The outer leaves are so short, that they will not tie up; but blanch well by being covered simply with a flat garden-pan, as directed for the Green Curled.
This variety is distinguished from the last named by its shorter, broader, deeper cut, and less curled leaves: the head is more solid at the centre, and is also much harder. The seeds should be sown early; for, if sown late, the plants are liable to be affected by dampness and wet weather, and to rot at the heart.
Cultivate in rows twelve or fourteen inches apart, and eight or ten inches apart in the rows.
ITALIAN GREEN CURLED ENDIVE.
Leaves from ten to twelve inches long, deep-green, narrow, and divided to the mid-rib. They grow erect, and the segments are much cut and curled.
It is a well-marked variety; readily distinguished by the length of the leaf-stalks, and the pinnatifid character of the leaves. It blanches well, and is of good quality.
LARGE GREEN CURLED ENDIVE.
A sub-variety of the Common Green Curled, of stronger growth, and larger hearted. The exterior leaves are ten or twelve inches long, looser and more erect than those of the last named: the inner ones are less numerous, and not so much divided.
It is hardy, blanches quickly, and is not liable to decay at the heart.
LONG ITALIAN GREEN CURLED.
Leaves long, deeply divided, and more upright in their growth than those of the Large Green Curled; the divisions of the leaves are large, and toothed, or cut, but are not curled; the heart-leaves are few and short. The variety is quite distinct; and, though not so neat and regular as some others, it is of excellent quality, and recommended for cultivation.
PICPUS FINE CURLED ENDIVE. Vil.
Exterior leaves seven or eight inches long, deeply lobed; the lobes divided in the same manner as those of the Common Green Curled. The inside leaves are finely cut, and much curled; and form a kind of head more compact than that of the Green Curled, but comparatively loose-hearted.
It blanches well and quickly, and is a good variety; though neither its foliage nor its general habit presents any very distinctive peculiarities.
RUFFEC CURLED.
Chicorée frisée de Ruffec. Vil.
This variety attains a remarkable size, much exceeding that of the Common Green Curled. The leaves sometimes measure nearly a foot and a half in length. Quality tender and good.
STAGHORN ENDIVE.
Early Fine Curled Rouen. Vil.
A recently introduced variety. The leaves are deep-green, divided into numerous segments, not frilled or curled, but much cut or jagged at the points, the borders having a branched appearance; whence the name. The leaves gradually shorten towards the centre of the plant, are more finely cut, and become closer together; thus forming a moderately firm heart, or head; less compact, however, than that of the Green Curled Summer Endive.
It is well adapted to humid climates, is hardier than the Common Green Curled, and is preferred by market-gardeners for cultivation in autumn and winter.
TRIPLE-CURLED MOSS ENDIVE. M'int.
Winter Moss Endive. Chicorée mousse. Vil.
This is a sub-variety of the Staghorn Endive, and comparatively of recent introduction. It is a unique sort, exceedingly well curled; and, when the variety is genuine and the plant well developed, has an appearance not unlike a tuft of moss.
It is liable to degenerate; and, though sometimes classed as a Winter Endive, is less hardy than many other sorts.
It may be grown in rows a foot apart, six inches being allowed between the plants in the rows.
WHITE CURLED OR EVER-BLANCHED ENDIVE. Vil.
Leaves pale yellowish-green, nearly white when young, ten inches long, rather narrow, lobed, cut, and beautifully frilled, or curled, on the borders; the upper surface of the mid-ribs generally tinged with red. The leaves of the centre are not numerous, and much curled: resting upon those of the exterior, they form no head, but leave the heart loose and open.
It is distinguished from all others by its color; both the leaves and the seeds being paler than those of any other sort. Its principal recommendation is signified in the name; but it should be used while young, cut and served in the form of lettuce. It is then tender and of good quality; though the plants yield a small amount of salad, compared with many other sorts. When fully grown, the leaves become tough, and often bitter. As a variety for winter culture, it is of little value.
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HORSE-RADISH.
Cochlearia armoracia. Nasturtium armoracia.
Horse-radish is a hardy perennial, introduced from Europe, growing naturally along old roads, and about gardens and waste places in long settled towns. The root is white within and without, long, nearly cylindrical, and from an inch to two inches and a half in diameter; stalk two feet or more in height, smooth and branching; the radical leaves are from fifteen to eighteen inches in length, oval-oblong, and toothed on the margin,--those of the stalk narrow, pointed, smooth, and shining; the flowers are white, and are put forth in June; the seed-pods are globular, but are very rarely formed, the flowers being usually abortive.
There is but one variety.
Propagation and Culture.--"Propagation is always effected by planting portions of the roots, which grow readily. The soil most conducive to it is a deep, rich, light sand, or alluvial deposit, free from stones or other obstructions; as, the longer, thicker, and straighter the roots are, the more they are valued. There is scarcely another culinary vegetable, of equal importance, in which cultivation is, in general, so greatly neglected as in this. It is often found planted in some obscure corner of the garden, where it may have existed for years; and is only visited when needed for the proprietor's table. The operation of hastily extracting a root or two is too often all that is thought of; and the crop is left to fight its way amongst weeds and litter as best it may."--M'Int.
A simple method of cultivation is as follows: Trench the ground eighteen inches or two feet deep, and set the crowns or leading buds of old roots, cut off about three inches in length, in rows a foot apart, and nine inches from each other in the rows; cover six inches deep, and cultivate in the usual manner during the summer. The shoots will soon make their appearance, and the large leaves of the plant completely occupy the surface of the bed. After two seasons' growth, the roots will be fit for use.
Taking the Crop.--Its season of use is from October till May; and, whenever the ground is open, the table may be supplied directly from the garden.
For winter use, take up the requisite quantity of roots in November, pack them in moist sand or earth, and store in the cellar, or in any situation out of reach of frost.
Use.--The root shredded or grated, with the addition of vinegar, is used as a condiment with meats and fish. It has an agreeable, pungent flavor; and, besides aiding digestion, possesses other important healthful properties.
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LETTUCE.
Lactuca sativa.
Lettuce is said to be of Asiatic origin. It is a hardy, annual plant, and, when fully developed, from two to three feet in height, with an erect, branching stem. The flowers are compound, yellow, usually about half an inch in diameter; the seeds are oval, flattened, and either white, brown, or black, according to the variety,--nearly thirty thousand are contained in an ounce, and their vitality is retained five years.
Soil.--Lettuce succeeds best in rich and comparatively moist soil; and is also best developed, and most crisp and tender, if grown in cool, moist weather. A poor soil, and a hot, dry exposure, may produce a small, tolerable lettuce early in spring, or late in autumn; but, if sown in such situations during the summer months, it will soon run to seed, and prove nearly, if not entirely, worthless for the table. The richer the soil may be, and the higher its state of cultivation, the larger and finer will be the heads produced; and the more rapidly the plants are grown, the more tender and brittle will be their quality.
Propagation.--It is always grown from seeds, which are small and light; half an ounce being sufficient to sow a nursery-bed of nearly a hundred square feet. It is necessary that the ground should be well pulverized and made smooth before it is sown, and the seeds should not be covered more than a fourth of an inch deep.
Cultivation.--Some recommend sowing where the plants are to remain, in drills from ten to fifteen inches apart, and thinning the plants to nearly the same distance in the lines; adapting the spaces between the drills, as well as between the plants in the drills, to the habit and size of the variety in cultivation. Others recommend sowing in a small nursery-bed, and transplanting. The process of transplanting unquestionably lessens the liability of the plants to run to seed, and produces the largest and finest heads. The first sowing in the open ground may be made as soon in March or April as the frost leaves the ground; and, if a continued supply is desired, a sowing should afterwards be made, at intervals of about four weeks, until September. "During spring, the young crops must be protected from frost, and in summer from drought by copious manure-waterings and frequent stirring of the ground between the plants. In the growing season, every stimulant should be applied; for much of the excellence of the crop depends on the quickness of its growth."
Forcing.--Lettuce is now served at table the year round; not, of course, of equal excellence at all seasons. Sowings are consequently required for each month: those intended for the spring supply being made from December to February; about twelve weeks being required for its full development, when reared in the winter months. The seed is sown rather thinly, broadcast, in a hot-bed; and, when the plants have made two or three leaves, they are pricked out to three or four inches apart in another portion of the bed,--thus affording them more space for growth, and opportunity to acquire strength and hardiness. When two or three inches high, they are finally transplanted into yet another part of the bed, at distances corresponding with the size of the variety, varying from ten to fourteen inches in each direction. As the plants increase in size, the quantity of air should be increased; and water should be given, whenever the surface of the bed becomes dry. In severe cold or in cloudy weather, and almost always at night, straw matting (made thick and heavy for the purpose), woollen carpeting, or a similar substitute, should be extended over the glass, for the retention of heat.
Some practise transplanting directly from the nursery-bed to where the plants are to remain; but the finest Lettuce is generally obtained by the treatment above described.
"Lettuces are sometimes required for cutting young, or when about two inches high. These are termed, by the French, Laitues à couper. The small, early sorts (such as the Hardy Hammersmith and Black-seeded Gotte) are preferred for this purpose; but any sort that is green or pale-green, and not brown or otherwise colored, will do. They should be sown in the open ground about once a week, or every ten days, from April, throughout the season. In winter, they are best raised on heat. They should be sown rather thickly in drills six inches apart."--Thomp.
To save Seed.--"This should be done from plants raised from early sowings. The finest specimens should be selected; avoiding, however, those that show a disposition to run quickly to seed. Those that heart readily, and yet are slow to run up, are to be preferred. Care should be taken that no two different varieties be allowed to seed near each other, in order that the sorts may be kept true. The seed which ripens first on the plant is the best: therefore it should be secured, rather than wait for the general ripening. The branchlets which first ripen their seed should be cut off, and laid on a cloth in the sun; or, when the forward portion of the seed is as near maturity as will safely bear without shaking off, the plants should be carefully pulled up, and placed upright against a south wall, with a cloth under them to perfect their ripening. The seed should in no case be depended on without trial. Plants from seeds two years old heart more readily than those from one-year-old seed."--Thomp.
Use.--"Lettuce is well known as one of the best of all salad plants. It is eaten raw in French salads, with cream, oil, vinegar, salt, and hard-boiled eggs. It is also eaten by many with sugar and vinegar; and some prefer it with vinegar alone. It is excellent when stewed, and forms an important ingredient in most vegetable soups. It is eaten at almost all meals by the French; by the English after dinner, if not served as adjuncts to dishes during the repast; and by many even at supper. In lobster and chicken salads, it is indispensable; and some of the varieties furnish a beautiful garnish for either fish, flesh, or fowl.
"In a raw state, Lettuce is emollient, cooling, and in some degree laxative and aperient, easy of digestion, but containing no nourishment."
Varieties.--These are exceedingly numerous. Some are of English origin; many are French and German; but comparatively few are American. The number of kinds grown to any considerable extent in this country is quite limited. Cultivators generally select such as appear to be best adapted to the soil and climate of their particular locality; and, by judicious management, endeavor to give vigor and hardiness to the plants, and to increase the size, compactness, and crispy quality of the head. Some of the varieties have thus been brought to a remarkable degree of perfection; the plants producing heads with as much certainty, and nearly as well proportioned and solid, as those of the Common Cabbage. They are generally divided into two classes; viz., Cabbage lettuces and Cos lettuces.
Cabbage Lettuces.--
BROWN DUTCH.
Black-seeded. Vil.
Head of medium size, rather long and loose; the leaves, which coil or roll back a little on the borders about the top of the head are yellowish-green, washed or stained with brownish-red,--the surplus leaves are large, round, waved, green, washed with bronze-red, and coarsely, but not prominently, blistered; diameter twelve to fourteen inches; weight about eight ounces.
This Lettuce cabbages readily, forms a good-sized head, is tender, of good quality, hardy, and tolerably early. It does not, however, retain its head well in dry and warm weather; and, as it is little affected by cold, seems best adapted to winter or very early culture. It resembles the Yellow-seeded Brown Dutch, but is not so early, and the head is looser and larger.
BROWN SILESIAN OR MARSEILLES CABBAGE. Vil.
Brown Batavian.
Head green, tinted with brown, remarkably large,--not compactly, but regularly, formed; ribs and nerves of the leaves large and prominent; the leaves disconnected with the head are large, bronze-green, coarsely blistered, and frilled and curled on the margin. The diameter of a well-grown plant is about eighteen inches, and its weight twenty-eight ounces. The seeds are white.
This Lettuce, though somewhat hard, is brittle and mild flavored, but is better when cooked than when served in its crude state as a salad. It is a hardy, late sort; succeeds well in winter, and retains its head a long period; but is rarely employed for forcing, on account of its size,--one of the plants occupying, in a frame or hot-bed, the space of two plants of average dimensions.
BROWN WINTER CABBAGE. Vil.
Large Brown Winter.
Head of medium size, green, washed or stained with brownish-red, regularly formed, and moderately compact; the exterior leaves are round and short, much wrinkled, and coarsely blistered. When grown in winter or in cool weather, the plants measure fourteen inches in diameter, and weigh from fourteen to sixteen ounces. The seeds are white.
Hardy, and well adapted for winter culture. The heads are not so firm as those of some varieties; but they are well retained, blanch white and tender, and are of excellent flavor.
EARLY OR SUMMER CAPE.
Royal Cape.
Head roundish, usually well formed, and moderately close and firm; the outer leaves are large, loose, golden-green, undulated, and coarsely blistered; the interior leaves are more finely blistered, and nearly of the same color as those of the outside; head, when divided, yellowish to the centre; the plants, when fully grown, measure nearly a foot in diameter, and weigh from six to ten ounces.
The variety is not well adapted for forcing or for early culture in the open ground. As a summer Lettuce, it is one of the best; enduring the heat well, and not running soon to seed. Though not so crisp and brittle as some of the winter or spring grown varieties, it is comparatively well flavored and of good quality. It is similar to the Summer or Royal Cabbage.
EARLY SIMPSON.
Hâtive de Simpson. Vil.
Head large, pale-green, a little irregular in its form, and only of medium solidity; the outside leaves are large and broad, plaited, and much blistered; diameter fourteen or fifteen inches; weight twelve or fourteen ounces; seeds white.
This Lettuce is brittle, and of excellent flavor; but its head is not compactly formed. Its season is near that of the Versailles Cabbage; but it runs quicker to seed. It is said to be an American variety, and is much grown in the vicinity of New York City for marketing.
EARLY WHITE SPRING OR BLACK-SEEDED GOTTE. Trans.
A small spring Cabbage Lettuce, growing close to the ground. Its heart is hard and firm, and measures about four inches in diameter when stripped of its outer leaves; color pale-green; the leaves are thin, nearly round, rugose, and waved on the margin.
This Lettuce comes early into use, and, besides, is of excellent flavor; but its chief merit is, that it remains longer than almost any other sort before running to seed, and even sometimes bursts before the flower-stem is formed. It is one of the smallest of the Cabbage lettuces, and somewhat resembles the Tennis-ball; from which, however, it differs in the leaves being more curled and of a lighter-green color, and by not running to seed so soon by three weeks or a month.
The variety has black seeds; and this fact should be particularly attended to in obtaining it from seedsmen, as the White-seeded Gotte lettuces run much sooner to flower. Various other Gotte lettuces are described by authors. "All are of great merit, but are little cultivated in the United States. Where small, hard, compact, and delicate sorts are required, this class should be selected."
ENDIVE-LEAVED. Vil.
Laitue chicorée.
This variety forms no head. The leaves are finely frilled and curled, and spread regularly from a common centre in the form of a rosette. A well-developed plant resembles Curled Endive. It appears to be nearly identical with the Green Curled Lettuce.
The seeds are black, and smaller than those of any other variety.
ENGLISH ENDIVE-LIKE CURLED-LEAVED. Vil.
Like the Common Green Curled Lettuce, this variety forms no head. The plant has the form of a rosette, and the foliage a silvery-gray appearance. The leaves are short, undulated on the border, but not frilled and curled like the Common variety; nerves purplish; the heart of the plant is large and full; seeds black.
This Lettuce is hardy, tender, and well flavored, and equal, if not superior, to the Common Green Curled, both in respect to quality and its adaptation to winter culture.
GREEN CURLED.
Curled. Endive-leaved. Boston Curled.
The Green Curled strongly resembles, if it is not identical with, the Endive-leaved. When well grown, the plant measures about ten inches in diameter, and is one of the most beautiful of all the lettuces. The exterior leaves are finely frilled and curled, and of a rich, golden-green color; the central leaves are smaller, but frilled and curled like those of the exterior. When in perfection, the plants have the form of a rosette, and make an excellent garnish. The seeds are white.
It is hardy, well adapted for forcing, and is extensively grown in the vicinity of Boston, Mass., for early marketing. As respects its value for the table, it cannot be considered equal to many of the Cabbage varieties, as it is deficient in crispness, and tenderness of texture,--qualities essential in all salad plants. Its recommendations are its hardiness, its adaptation to early culture and forcing, and particularly its beautiful appearance.
Market-gardeners and cultivators make three sub-varieties, which are known as "Single-curled," "Double-curled," and "Triple-curled;" the difference consisting in the finer frilling, or curling, of the last named. A well-grown plant resembles some varieties of Endive; whence the term "Endive-leaved."
GREEN WINTER CABBAGE.
Hardy Winter Cabbage. Morine. Vil.
Head pale-green, of medium size, round and regular, firm and solid; leaves of the head much wrinkled, and coarsely blistered; the outside leaves are broad and large, glossy-green, wrinkled and blistered like those composing the head. Winter-grown plants will measure in their full diameter about twelve inches, and weigh from fourteen to sixteen ounces. Seeds white.
The Green Winter Cabbage Lettuce is tender, and of excellent flavor, particularly if cultivated in cool weather. It is hardy, forms its head promptly and uniformly, is slow in the development of its flowers, and must be classed as one of the best of the hardy, winter varieties.
HAMMERSMITH HARDY. M'Int.
Hardy Green Hammersmith. Early Frame. Early Dwarf Dutch. Green Dutch.
A popular, old variety, with a comparatively small, dark-green head. The leaves are much wrinkled, concave, thick, and fleshy; the seeds are white. It is considered the hardiest sort in cultivation, and is one of the best for growing in winter or for forcing. When raised in spring, late in autumn, or in cool, moist weather, the plants attain a diameter of nearly ten inches, and weigh from six to eight ounces; but summer-grown specimens are much smaller, rarely measuring more than six or seven inches in diameter, or weighing above three or four ounces. In warm, dry weather, it soon runs to seed.
ICE CABBAGE. Trans.
This variety belongs to the division of the Silesian or Batavian lettuces, and must not be confounded with the White Cos. The leaves are of a light shining green, blistered on the surface, much undulated, and slightly jagged on the edges, nearly erect, eight inches long, and five or six inches broad; the outer leaves spread a little at the top, but grow close at the heart. It blanches without tying up, and becomes white, crisp, and tender.
The Ice Cabbage Lettuce comes into use with the White Silesian, from which it differs, as it also does from any other of its class, in being much more curled, having a lucid, sparkling surface (whence probably its name), and not turning in so much at the heart. It lasts as long in crop as the White Silesian.
IMPERIAL HEAD.
Turkey Cabbage. Union.
A large and excellent variety, but inferior to the Versailles or the Ice Cabbage. Head large, regular, a little oblong, of a dull, pale-green color, and not compactly formed; the outside leaves are large, rounded, undulated or waved on the borders, thin in texture, and of a soiled or tarnished light-green color; diameter fourteen inches; weight twelve to fifteen ounces; seeds white.
This is a crisp and tender lettuce, though sometimes slightly bitter. It is not early, and soon shoots up to seed; but is quite hardy, and well adapted for winter cultivation.
The Imperial Head, or Imperial Cabbage Lettuce, with white seeds, was at one period more generally cultivated in small gardens than any other variety; and though some of the recently introduced sorts excel it, not only in size, but in tender consistency and flavor, the Imperial is still extensively cultivated and much esteemed.
With the exception of the color of its seeds, it resembles the Turkey Cabbage.
INDIA.
Large India.
Head large, moderately compact; leaves large, with coarse and hard mid-ribs and veins. Its recommendation is its remarkable adaptedness to summer culture; as it withstands heat and drought, and retains its head to a remarkable degree before running to seed. For the table, it is inferior to many other sorts; although the large ribs and veins of the leaves are comparatively brittle, and of tender texture.
LARGE BROWN CABBAGE OR MOGUL.
Grosse brune paresseuse. Vil. Large Gray Cabbage. Mammoth.
Head remarkably large, round, regularly formed, grayish-green, tinted or washed with reddish-brown at the top: the leaves not composing the head are large, plaited, coarsely blistered, of a grayish-green color, stained here and there with spots of pale-brown. The diameter of a well-grown plant is about fourteen inches, and its weight nearly a pound; seeds black.
The Large Brown Cabbage Lettuce is crisp and tender, but is sometimes slightly bitter. Its season is near that of the Versailles; but it is slower in forming its head, and sooner runs to flower. It is hardy, good for forcing and well adapted for cultivation during winter. In summer, the heads are comparatively small, and loosely formed.
LARGE RED CABBAGE.
Rouge charteuse. Vil.
Head green, washed with red, of medium size, regularly but loosely formed; the exterior leaves are large, undulated, blistered, and stained with brownish-red, like those of the head; diameter thirteen or fourteen inches; weight twelve ounces; seeds black.
Its season is near that of the Large Brown Cabbage. When grown in warm weather, the head is small, and the plant soon runs to seed: in winter, the head is much larger, more solid, and longer retained. It resembles the Brown Dutch, but differs in the deeper color of the leaves.
LARGE WINTER CABBAGE OR MADEIRA.
Laitue passion. Vil.
Head of medium size, regular in form, not compact, green, washed with red at the top: the leaves not composing the head are broad and large, a little undulated or waved on the border, plaited or folded at the base, thin in texture, somewhat blistered, and stained with spots of clear brown. When grown in winter, or in cool, moist weather, the plants will measure about a foot in diameter, and weigh nearly a pound. Seeds white.
It is quite brittle, though not remarkable for tenderness of texture; hardy; succeeds well when grown in cold weather; and remains long in head before shooting up to seed. Season, the same with that of the Green Winter Cabbage.
MALTA OR ICE CABBAGE.
Ice Cos. Drumhead. White Cabbage. De Malte. Vil.
In its general character, this variety resembles the White Silesian. The head is remarkably large, somewhat flattened, compact, pale-green without, and white at the centre; the outer leaves are large and broad, glossy-green, and coarsely blistered; the mid-ribs and nerves are large and prominent. The extreme diameter of a full-grown plant is about sixteen inches, and the weight from twenty to twenty-four ounces. The seeds are white.
The variety heads readily, blanches naturally, and is crisp, tender, and well flavored. It is hardy, but not early; and remains long in head without running to seed.
It is extensively cultivated in England; and in some localities succeeds better, and is of finer quality, than the White Silesian or Marseilles Cabbage. The name is derived from the glazed or polished surface of the leaves.
NEAPOLITAN.
Naples Cabbage.
Plant dwarfish; head of large size, round, regularly formed, solid,--when in perfection, resembling a well-developed cabbage; the exterior leaves are broad and large, green, frilled on the margin, and coarsely blistered. If well grown, the plants will measure sixteen inches in diameter, and weigh from twenty to twenty-four ounces. Seeds white.
The Neapolitan Lettuce blanches naturally, is well flavored, and so slow in the development of its flower-stalk, that the heads are sometimes artificially divided at the top to facilitate its growth, and to secure the seeds, a supply of which is always obtained with difficulty; as, aside from the tardiness of the plant in flowering, the yield is never abundant.
It is not so good for forcing as many others, and must be classed as a summer rather than as a winter variety.
PALATINE. Vil.
Brown Cabbage.
A variety of medium size, with a round, somewhat depressed head, stained with red about the top. The foliage is yellowish-green, strongly marked or clouded with brownish-red. Extreme diameter of the plant ten or eleven inches; weight about twelve ounces. The seeds are black.
It is remarkably crisp and tender; of excellent flavor; yields a large quantity of salad in proportion to its size; flourishes well at all seasons, even during winter; and must be classed as one of the best, and recommended for general cultivation.
SPOTTED CABBAGE (BLACK-SEEDED).
Sanguine à graine noire. Vil.
The heads of this variety are of medium size, round and regular in their form, and comparatively solid; the sides are brownish-red, but at the crowns the color is changed to clear, bright-red; the outer leaves are short, broad, and round, and strongly marked or clouded with brownish-red, like those composing the head. If grown in winter or in cool weather, the plants attain a diameter of about twelve inches, and will weigh twelve ounces.
It retains its head longer than almost any other variety; and, though sometimes slightly bitter, is considered superior to the White-seeded. Compared with the last-named, the head is not so well formed, the foliage is deeper colored, and it is not so well adapted for forcing or for cultivation during winter.
SPOTTED CABBAGE (WHITE-SEEDED).
Sanguine à graine blanche. Vil.
Head yellowish-green, spotted and clouded with brownish-red, of medium size, round and regular. The surplus leaves are small and numerous, round, prominently blistered, copper-green, streaked and variegated with brownish-red. Summer-grown plants will measure ten inches in diameter, and weigh about eight ounces. Winter-grown plants, or those grown in cool and moist weather, will give an increase of the diameter, and weigh nearly a pound.
It is a brittle, well-flavored lettuce, hardy, and well adapted for growing in frames during winter. When grown in the summer months, the head is seldom well formed, and the plants soon run to seed.
STONE TENNIS-BALL.
Gotte lente à monter. Vil.
Plant quite small, with a uniformly green, regular, solid head; all of the leaves to the heart being strongly wrinkled and coarsely blistered. The exterior leaves are comparatively few and small, green, undulated, and prominently blistered. Summer-grown plants measure six or seven inches in diameter, and weigh about three ounces. When grown early or late in the season, or under the influence of cool and moist weather, the plants attain a larger size; often measuring nine or ten inches in diameter, and weighing eight ounces. The seeds are black.
The Stone Tennis-ball hearts well, is of excellent quality, and, in proportion to its size, yields a large quantity of salad. It retains its head a long period, even in warm weather, without shooting up to seed; and, as most of the leaves of the plant are embraced in the head, it occupies but a small space of ground in cultivation. Hardy and early.
SUMMER CABBAGE.
Large White Cabbage. Royal Cabbage. Summer Blond. Vil. Sugar Cabbage.
Foliage pale yellowish-green; head of medium size, round, somewhat flattened, firm and close; the leaves composing it are wrinkled and blistered,--those of the outside being frequently torn and broken on the margins about the crown. The entire diameter of a well-grown plant is about twelve inches, and the weight from ten to twelve ounces. The seeds are white.
It is one of the best sorts for summer cultivation, as it not only forms its head readily in warm and dry weather, but remains long in head before running to flower. For forcing, or for sowing early in the season, some other varieties would succeed better. Though sometimes slightly bitter, it is crisp, tender in texture, appears to be adapted to our climate, and is recommended for cultivation.
TENNIS-BALL.
Green Ball. Button. Capuchin. Hardy Hammersmith. Vil.
One of the oldest and most esteemed of the Cabbage lettuces. The head is below medium size, dark-green, remarkably solid if grown in cool weather, but often loose and open-hearted if cultivated during the summer months; the surplus leaves are few in number, deep-green, slightly curled, and broadly, but not prominently, blistered; the seeds of the genuine variety are black.
The Tennis-ball Lettuce is remarkable for its extreme hardiness. Winter-grown plants, or those raised in cool, moist weather, will measure about ten inches in diameter, and weigh eight ounces; whilst those raised under opposite conditions rarely exceed seven or eight inches in diameter, or weigh more than four or five ounces.
It is slow in running to seed, and the head blanches white and tender. "It requires little room in frames in winter, and yields a great return in spring, as almost the whole plant is eatable." A large Cabbage Lettuce, tinted with brown about the head, is erroneously known in some localities as the "Tennis-ball."
TURKEY CABBAGE.
Similar to the Imperial Head; the principal if not the only difference consisting in the color of the seeds, which are black.
VERSAILLES. Vil.
Swedish. Blond Versailles. Sugar-lettuce.
Head pale yellowish-green, large, long, and compactly formed; the exterior leaves are large, numerous, wrinkled, and coarsely blistered. When in its greatest perfection, the extreme diameter of the whole plant is about fourteen inches, and its weight twelve or fourteen ounces. The seeds are white.
This variety forms its head quickly and uniformly; cabbages white and crisp; is slow in shooting up to seed; flourishes in almost every description of soil, and at all seasons, except, perhaps, in extreme cold; and, though sometimes slightly bitter to the taste, is crisp, tender, and of good quality.
With the exception of its paler color, it resembles the Neapolitan. It is one of the best of all varieties for summer cultivation.
VICTORIA OR RED-BORDERED. Vil.
An excellent early and hardy variety. The head is of medium size, tinted or washed with red at the top, round and regular in form, and comparatively solid; leaves large, yellowish-green, wrinkled, and blistered. If grown in summer, the plants measure eight or nine inches in diameter, and weigh four ounces. In cool weather, the plants attain a diameter of twelve inches, and weigh from ten to twelve ounces; seeds white.
The Victoria Lettuce is larger than the Tennis-ball, heads freely, and is crisp and well flavored. When sown in summer, it soon runs to flower; but, in cool weather, the heads are well retained.
WHITE GOTTE (BLACK-SEEDED). Vil.
A small, low-growing, yellowish-green Cabbage Lettuce, with a comparatively loose head. The plants rarely measure more than six inches in their full diameter, or weigh above four ounces.
It is one of the earliest of all the lettuces, crisp, of good flavor, and well adapted for forcing or for frame culture. Besides the distinction in the color of the seeds, it differs from the White-seeded White Gotte in its smaller and more loosely formed heads.
WHITE GOTTE (WHITE-SEEDED). Vil.
White Tennis-ball.
This variety has a small, long, firm, and close head; and is uniformly of a yellowish-green color. The outer leaves are small, light greenish-yellow, waved on the borders, and prominently blistered. The plant is of small dimensions; rarely measuring more than six or seven inches in diameter, or weighing above three ounces. The variety is early, crisp, and well flavored, but soon runs to seed, and is much better adapted for growing in winter, or for forcing, than for cultivation in the summer months.
WHITE SILESIAN, OR WHITE BATAVIAN. Vil.
Drumhead Cabbage. Large Drumhead. Spanish.
One of the largest of the Cabbage lettuces. Head golden-green, tinted with brownish-red about the top, regularly but not compactly formed. The outer leaves are large and broad, yellowish-green, bordered with brown, wrinkled, and coarsely blistered. When well grown, the entire diameter of the plant is about eighteen inches, and its weight twenty ounces. The seeds are white.
This variety appears to be adapted to all seasons. It is hardy, retains its head well, withstands heat and drought, blanches white and crisp, and is of excellent flavor. It succeeds well in frames; but, on account of its large size, is not a profitable sort for forcing.
A variety, known as the "Tennis-ball" in some localities, is very similar to this; and the "Boston Cabbage" of New England, if not identical, seems to be but an improved form of the White Silesian.
WHITE STONE CABBAGE.
Large Golden Summer Cabbage.
Head of medium size, yellowish-green, stained with brownish-red, firm and solid. When fully developed, the entire diameter of the plant is about fourteen inches, and its weight sixteen ounces. The seeds are white.
This lettuce is brittle, of tender texture and good quality, though it is sometimes slightly bitter. It is hardy, heads readily, is slow in running to flower, succeeds well in warm and dry weather, and is also well adapted for frame-culture or for forcing.
YELLOW-SEEDED BROWN DUTCH. Vil.
White Dutch. American Brown Dutch.
Head of medium size, yellowish-green, variegated with red, rounded at the top, and tapering to a point at the base; compact; seeds yellow.
A half-early sort, of good quality, hardy, and well adapted for winter culture, or for sowing early in spring. It somewhat resembles the Black-seeded Brown Dutch: but, apart from the difference in the color of the seeds, its foliage is more blistered, and more colored with red; and the plant produces numerous sprouts, or shoots, about the base of the head.
* * * * *
COS LETTUCES.
These are quite distinct from the Cabbage lettuces before described. The heads are long, erect, largest at the top, and taper towards the root,--the exterior leaves clasping or coving over and around the head in the manner of a hood, or cowl. As a class, they are remarkable for hardiness and vigor; but the midribs and nerves of the leaves are comparatively coarse and hard, and most of the kinds will be found inferior to the Cabbage lettuces in crispness and flavor. They are ill adapted for cultivation in dry and hot weather; and attain their greatest perfection only when grown in spring or autumn, or in cool and humid seasons.
Varieties.--
ALPHANGE OR FLORENCE COS (BLACK-SEEDED). Vil.
In the form of the head, and in its general character, this variety resembles the White-seeded. Both of the sorts are remarkable for size, for hardiness and healthy habit, for the length of time they remain in head before running to seed, and for the brittle and tender character of the ribs and nerves of the leaves.
Besides the difference in the color of the seeds, the head of this variety is smaller, and the foliage paler, than that of the White-seeded.
ALPHANGE OR FLORENCE COS (WHITE-SEEDED). Vil.
Magnum Bonum Cos.
Head large, long, not compact, and forming well only when the exterior leaves are tied loosely together. The midribs and nerves of the leaves are large, but brittle, and of tender texture.
It is ten or twelve days later than the Green Paris Cos, retains its head well, is hardy and of healthy habit, but is deficient in flavor, and inferior to either of the Paris sorts.
ARTICHOKE-LEAVED. Vil.
This variety forms no head; and, in its foliage and general habit, is quite distinct from all of the Cos varieties. The leaves are numerous, twelve or fourteen inches long; of a lively-green color, often stained with brownish-red; erect, narrow, pointed, and toothed on the margin, like those of the Artichoke. Before blanching, the leaves are slightly bitter; but mild, crisp, and tender, with no savor of bitterness, after being blanched. The seeds are black.
The plant grows uprightly, groups its leaves together, and thus blanches the interior parts spontaneously; but a much larger portion will be fit for use, if the leaves are collected, and tied loosely about the tips in the manner of treating Cos lettuces.
It is remarkably hardy, slow in running to flower, and the seeds may be sown till August. Late in the season, it is mild and pleasant, and furnishes a tender salad when most of the Cos lettuces become bitter and strong-flavored.
BATH GREEN COS. M'Int.
This variety has much merit as a hardy, winter, green sort; and is nearly related to the Brown Cos, but is less brown on the outer leaves: but, while that has white seeds, the seeds of this variety are black. Hence there are found, upon the catalogues of seedsmen, Black-seeded Bath, or Brown Cos; and White-seeded Bath, or Brown Cos; the latter seeming to be the hardiest, while the former appears to be the best.
BROWN COS.
Bath Cos. Sutton's Berkshire Brown Cos. Wood's Improved Bath Cos. Bearfield Cos. White-seeded Brown Cos.
This is one of the oldest of the Cos lettuces, and considered the hardiest of the class. The head is of large size, pointed, not compact, and requires to be tied in order to obtain it in its greatest perfection; the leaves are of a copper-green color, stiff and firm, toothed and blistered; the seeds are white.
The Brown Cos blanches white and tender, and is exceedingly crisp and well flavored; but the dark-brownish color of the exterior leaves is deemed an objection, and it is often displaced by really inferior varieties. In weight and measurement, it differs little from the Green Paris Cos. Extensively cultivated and much esteemed in England.
GRAY PARIS COS. Vil.
Head of the form of an inverted cone; green, with a grayish tone about the top; compact, and forming well without tying. The exterior leaves are numerous, deep-green, erect, firm, and prominently blistered. The full diameter of the plant is nearly twelve inches, and its weight about twenty ounces; the seeds are white.
The Gray Paris Cos is brittle, and of tender texture; but is considered inferior to the other Paris Cos sorts, and is but little cultivated.
GREEN PARIS COS. Vil.
Kensington Cos. Sutton's Superb Green Cos. Wellington. Ady's Fine Large.
Head inversely conical, compact; leaves deep-green, erect, firm, hooded or cowl-formed towards the ends, and serrated on the margin; the ribs and nerves are large and prominent. When fully grown, the entire diameter of the plant is fifteen or sixteen inches, and its weight twenty-four ounces; the seeds are white.
It is considered one of the best of the Cos lettuces; and, though not so hardy as the Brown Cos, is a good variety for forcing, and furnishes a tender, well-flavored head during summer. Whether for spring, summer, or autumn, it is an excellent sort. It attains a large size, is of a fine green color, and, "from the manner in which the outer leaves cove over the interior ones, blanches well without having to be tied together."
It has a tender, brittle leaf; is some days earlier than the White Paris; and is the principal variety employed by the market-gardeners of Paris for cultivating under glass.
GREEN WINTER COS. Vil.
Head elongated, somewhat of the form of the preceding variety; deep-green, and not forming well, unless the exterior leaves are tied together at the tips; the outer leaves are large, erect, concave, toothed on the margin, and prominently blistered; the seeds are black.
It blanches well; but the ribs and nerves of the leaves are comparatively coarse and hard. Well adapted to winter culture; but, as a summer lettuce, of little value.
MONSTROUS BROWN COS. Vil.
Two-headed.
Head of remarkable size, long, loose, and open; leaves large, equalling in size those of the Alphange or Florence Cos; green, washed with brown; pointed; seeds white.
The plant sends out numerous side-shoots, or suckers; and sometimes produces several distinct heads: these, however, are generally loosely formed, and not of the fine, tender quality of the Paris varieties.
OAK-LEAVED COS.
Romaine à Feuille de Chêne. Vil.
The Oak-leaved Lettuce produces no head, but forms a loose and open heart at the centre of the plant. The leaves are numerous, bronze-green, and deeply cut, or lobed, on the margin, in the form of the leaves of some species of the oak; the seeds are black.
The plants put forth fresh sprouts after having been cut; but the quality is inferior, and the variety is rarely cultivated.
RED WINTER COS.
Foliage deep-brown, smooth, and glossy,--gathered at the centre of the plant into a loose heart, rather than head; seeds black.
The hardiness of this lettuce is its principal merit. It is little affected by severe weather; and, as a sort for winter culture, is desirable. When grown in summer, it is of poor quality.
SPOTTED COS (BLACK-SEEDED).
Red-spotted. Bloody. Aleppo. Panachée à Graine noire. Vil.
This variety is similar to the White-seeded, and, like it, forms no head: the leaves are green, much stained or clouded with brownish-red, erect, firm, rounded at the ends, concave or spoon-shaped, and grouped at the centre into a long and comparatively close heart.
It is crisp and well flavored, but attains its greatest perfection only when the outer leaves are tied loosely together about the top of the plant.
SPOTTED COS (WHITE-SEEDED). Vil.
Like the preceding, this variety forms no head; but the interior leaves are formed into an erect, oblong, close heart, which, by tying the exterior leaves together, becomes white, crisp, and of excellent flavor.
Though late, it is hardy, remains long in head before running to seed, and is well worthy of cultivation.
WAITE'S WHITE COS. M'Int.
An excellent variety, apparently intermediate between the Green Paris and White Paris; not of quite so deep a green as the former, yet deeper than the latter. With regard to its comparative excellence, it is considered fully equal to the Paris Cos varieties; as it is grown as easily, and is equally crisp and tender. Size and weight nearly the same.
WHITE BRUNOY COS (BLACK-SEEDED). Vil.
Leaves of large size, yellowish-green, pointed, slightly undulated, entire on the borders, and often revoluted like those of the White-seeded. It rarely produces a head; or, if so, it is loose and open. Its greatest perfection is obtained by collecting the exterior leaves about the top of the plant, and tying them loosely together.
The variety is not considered superior to the White-seeded, though both of the sorts are inferior to the Paris Cos or Florence sorts.
WHITE BRUNOY COS (WHITE-SEEDED). Vil.
The heads of this variety are long and loose, and rarely form well unless the exterior leaves are tied loosely together. It somewhat resembles the Alphange in the form and character of its foliage, though the head is longer and larger.
The plant attains a remarkable size, is hardy, and of good quality; but soon runs to seed, and appears to be a winter rather than a summer lettuce.
WHITE PARIS COS. Vil. M'Int.
London White Cos. Sutton's Superb White Cos.
The head of this variety has the form of the Green Paris, and blanches well without tying; the outside leaves are erect, yellowish-green, and rather numerous. The extreme diameter of the entire plant, when well grown, is about fourteen inches, and its weight nearly twenty-four ounces. The seeds are white.
This is the sort most generally grown by the London market-gardeners, millions of it being produced annually within a few miles of London alone; and it has been adopted almost exclusively, by the gardeners of Paris, for cultivation in the open air. Next to the Green Paris Cos, this is the best, the largest, and the longest in running to seed, of all the summer lettuces. It is tender, brittle, and mild flavored, less hardy and a few days later than the Green Paris Cos.
ENDIVE-LEAVED LETTUCE. Trans.
Lactuca intybacea.
The leaves of this species have the form of those of some of the varieties of Endive; whence the name. They are small, pale-green, broad towards the ends, cut and irregularly lobed on the borders. While young, the plants have the appearance of Green Curled Endive.
As it runs to flower much earlier than the Spinach Lettuce, it is less esteemed than that variety. The seeds should be sown thickly, in shallow drills ten or twelve inches apart; and the plants should be cut for use when they are three or four inches high.
PERENNIAL LETTUCE. Vil.
Lactuca perennis.
This species is a native of Europe; and, in habit and duration, is distinct from all others. The leaves are about ten inches long, of a glaucous or sea green color, thick and fleshy, deeply cut or divided on the margin, and spread regularly from the centre of the plant in the form of a rosette. When fully developed, the plant is two feet and a half high; separating into numerous branches, which terminate in large purple flowers.
The seeds, which are of a brownish-black color, are sown in drills fifteen inches apart; and the plants should be thinned to six inches apart in the drills.
The leaves are eaten as salad; but, when so used, they should be blanched, either by earthing up or by tying the plant together. They are also sometimes eaten boiled as Spinach or Endive.
SPINACH LETTUCE. Trans.
Oak-leaved Lettuce. Lactuca quercina.
The leaves of this species are six inches long, pale yellowish-green, lyrate, with obtuse and entire divisions: when fully developed, they somewhat resemble those of the oak, as implied by the name. The plants form no heart, or head; and are never cultivated singly like the Cabbage or Cos lettuces. The leaves are produced in moderate abundance, and are crisp and well flavored.
The seeds should be sown, like those of the Endive-leaved, thickly, in drills; and, when the lower leaves are four or five inches long, they may be cut for use. If not taken off too closely, the plants will afford a second cutting. The seeds are sown early with other spring salads.
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MADRAS RADISH.
Raphanus sp.
The roots of the Madras Radish are sometimes eaten while they are quite young and small; but they soon become fibrous, strong flavored, and unfit for use. The plant is generally cultivated for its pods, which sometimes measure ten or twelve inches in length: these are solid, crisp, and tender, and, while young, are used for pickling and for salad; being much superior for these purposes to those of the Common Radish.
When cultivated for its pods, the seeds should be sown in drills two feet apart, and the plants thinned to nine inches in the drills.
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MALLOW, CURLED-LEAVED.
Malva crispa.
An annual plant, introduced from Europe, and occasionally found growing spontaneously in the vicinity of gardens where it has been once cultivated. The stem is frequently more than six feet in height; the leaves are nearly five inches in diameter, smooth, and of a rich green color, lobed, and beautifully frilled or curled on the borders; flowers axillary, white, and small; the seeds are somewhat kidney-shaped, of a yellowish-brown color, and retain their powers of germination five years.
Cultivation.--The seeds are sown the last of April or beginning of May, and covered about an inch deep. The plants require much space, and should be grown at least eighteen inches asunder. The best method is to drop a few seeds where the plants are to grow; or to rake in a few seeds sown broadcast, and transplant.
Use.--No part of the plant is considered suitable for food; but the elegantly curled leaves are employed for garnishing desserts.
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MUSTARD.
BLACK MUSTARD.
Brown Mustard. Red Mustard. Sinapis nigra.
Black Mustard is a hardy, annual plant, introduced from Europe. In some localities, it grows naturally in great abundance; and is regarded as a troublesome weed, though its seeds furnish the common table mustard. Its stem is four or five feet in height, round, smooth, and branching; the leaves are lobed and toothed on the margin,--the radical or lower ones rough, those of the upper portion of the stalk smooth; the flowers are numerous, rather large, bright-yellow; the pods are erect, somewhat four-sided, and are set closely against the sides of the stalk; the seeds are small, round, brownish-black, and retain their germinative powers many years; nearly eighteen thousand are contained in an ounce.
Propagation and Cultivation.--It is raised from seeds, about four quarts of which will be required for sowing an acre. It is sometimes grown in the vegetable garden, but is generally cultivated in fields for its seeds, which, as before remarked, furnish the common table mustard. The sowing is usually made from the middle of April to the middle of May. After making the surface of the ground fine and smooth, sow broadcast, or thinly in shallow drills fourteen or fifteen inches apart; cultivate during the season in the usual manner; and, in August, the crop will be ready for harvesting. Cut the stalks at the ground before the pods shed their seeds; and spread in a dry, light, and airy situation, till they are sufficiently dried for threshing.
When grown for salad in the vegetable garden, it should be sown, and cut for use, as directed for White Mustard.
"If the seed is covered to the depth of three inches or more, it will lie dormant, and retain its powers of vegetation for ages: from which circumstance, together with the liability of the seed to become shaken out in the harvesting of the crop, such lands as are once employed for the growing of Mustard cannot be fairly cleaned of it for a considerable length of time, and only by judicious fallowing or fallow-cropping, with repeated hoeing and weeding."--Law.
Use.--Besides the use of the flour of the seeds as a condiment, the seed-leaves are used as salad, in the manner of those of the White species; and the young plants, cut to the ground, are used as spring greens, either boiled alone, or mixed with Spinach.
CHINESE OR PEKIN MUSTARD. Vil.
Sinapis Pekinensis.
A hardy annual, introduced from China. Stem four feet high, with remarkably large leaves; the flowers, which are produced in loose, terminal spikes, are yellow and showy; the seeds are small, and retain their vitality five years.
Cultivation.--The seeds are sown in April or May, in shallow drills ten or twelve inches apart. If cultivated for its seeds, the drills should be eighteen inches or two feet apart, and the plants thinned to six or eight inches in the drills.
Use.--The leaves are employed in salads, in the manner of Cress; and they are also sometimes boiled and served as Spinach.
CABBAGE-LEAVED MUSTARD.
Moutarde à feuilles de Chou. Vil. Sinapis sp.
A hardy, annual, Chinese plant, similar in habit to the species last described. Stem from three to four feet high; leaves large, roundish, lobed, and wrinkled; flowers yellow; the seeds are small, reddish-brown or black, and retain their powers of germination a long period.
Cultivation and Use.--This species is cultivated in the same manner, and is used for the same purpose, as the Chinese Mustard.
CURLED MUSTARD.
West-India Cress.
A comparatively small species. Stem two feet and a half high; flowers bright-yellow; seeds small, blackish-brown,--scarcely distinguishable from those of the Black Mustard. The leaves are of medium size, greenish-yellow, broadest near the ends, deeply and finely cut on the borders, and beautifully frilled, or curled: they make an excellent garnish; and, when used as salad, have a pleasant, cress-like flavor.
CUT-LEAVED MUSTARD.
Moutarde lacinée. Vil.
In its general character, this species resembles the Chinese or Pekin Mustard: the leaves, however, are much smaller, and divided quite to the mid-rib.
When young, the leaves make an excellent small salad; having the warm, pleasant flavor of Cress.
WHITE MUSTARD.
Sinapis alba.
White Mustard is a hardy annual, introduced from Europe, and occasionally found growing spontaneously in the vicinity of fields and gardens where it has been once cultivated. The stem is three feet and upwards in height; the leaves are large, deeply lobed, and of a rich, deep-green color; the flowers are large, yellow, produced in loose, terminal spikes; the seeds are yellow, much larger than those of the preceding species, and retain their vitality five years,--seventy-five hundred are contained in an ounce.
Propagation.--White Mustard is always raised from seeds; about four quarts of which will be necessary for seeding an acre. When grown for salad, an ounce will sow forty feet of drill.
Soil and Cultivation.--It succeeds best in rich, loamy soil; which, previously to sowing, should be thoroughly pulverized. When cultivated in the vegetable garden for salad or greens, the first sowing may be made as early in the season as the frost will admit. Sow the seeds thickly, in drills eight or ten inches apart; and cover half an inch deep with fine mould. Remove all weeds as they make their appearance; and, in continued dry weather, water freely.
The plants should be cut for use while in the seed-leaf; as, when much developed, they become strong, rank, and ill-flavored.
For a succession, a small sowing may be made every week until September.
In field culture, the seeds are sometimes sown broadcast; but the more common method is to sow in drills fifteen or eighteen inches apart. When the crop is ready for harvesting, the plants are cut to the ground, stored and threshed, as directed for Black Mustard.
Use.--The plants, before the development of the rough leaves, are used as salad: when more advanced, they are boiled and eaten as Spinach. The flour of the seeds furnishes a table mustard of good quality; though the seeds of the Black species possess greater piquancy, and are generally employed for the purpose. The seeds of both species are much used in medicine, and are considered equally efficacious.
* * * * *
NASTURTIUM.
Indian Cress. Capucine, of the French. Tropæolum, sp. et var.
This plant is a native of Peru; and, though generally treated as an annual, is a tender perennial. When cultivated for its flowers or seeds, it should be planted in poor, light soil; but when foliage and luxuriant growth are desired, for the covering of arbors, trellises, and the like, the soil can hardly be made too rich.
The planting should be made in April or May. As the seeds are quite large, they should be covered two inches deep. When planted in drills, they are made three feet apart, and the young plants thinned to six inches apart in the drills. The growing crop may be supported by staking or bushing, as practised with pease; or the taller-growing sorts may be shortened in, which will induce a strong, stocky habit of growth.
While the plants are young, they will require some attention, in order that they may be properly attached to the stakes or trellises provided for their support; after which, little care need be bestowed, beyond the ordinary stirring of the soil, and keeping the ground free from weeds.
Use.--The unexpanded flower-buds, and the seeds while young and succulent, have a warm, aromatic taste, and are pickled and used as capers. The young shoots are eaten as salad; and the flowers, which are large and richly colored, are used for garnishing. Few ornamental plants are better known or more generally cultivated than the Nasturtium.
The species and varieties are as follow:--
TALL NASTURTIUM.
Tropæolum majus.
Stem from six to eight feet high, succulent; leaves alternate, smooth, rounded,--the leaf-stems being attached to the disc, or under-surface; flowers large, on long stems, yellow,--the two upper petals streaked and marked with purple; the seeds are large, somewhat triangular, convex on one of the sides, of a drab or pale-brown color, and retain their germinative properties five years,--from a hundred and eighty to two hundred are contained in an ounce.
DARK-FLOWERING.
A variety of the preceding; differing only in the brown color of the flowers. Cultivation and uses the same.
VARIEGATED.
Also a sub-variety of the Tall Nasturtium, with orange-yellow flowers; each of the petals being stained or spotted with purple.
Other varieties occur, differing in color, but equally useful for the purposes before described.
SMALL NASTURTIUM.
Dwarf Capucine. Tropæolum minus.
Much smaller, in all respects, than the common Dwarf variety of Tropæolum majus; the stem rarely measuring more than two feet in length, or rising above a foot in height. The flowers are yellow; the lower petals with a blotch of scarlet at their base, and the upper ones delicately striped with the same color.
It yields abundantly; and, though the pods are comparatively small, they are generally preferred to those of the Tall Nasturtium for pickling.
* * * * *
PICRIDIUM.
Garden Picridium. Picridium vulgare.
A hardy, annual plant, from the south of Europe. Stem eighteen inches high; leaves six to eight inches long, irregular in form, but generally broad at the ends, and heart-shaped and clasping at the base; flowers yellow, compound, produced in clusters; the seeds are long, slightly curved, four-sided, brown or blackish-brown, and retain their vitality five years.
Sowing and Cultivation.--The seeds should be sown in April or May, in drills a foot apart, and half an inch in depth. As the plants, when allowed to run to seed, produce but little foliage, it is necessary, in order to secure a continued supply of fresh leaves, to cut or nip off the flowering-shoot as it makes its appearance. Under proper management, the leaves grow rapidly, and are produced in great abundance.
Use.--The leaves have a pleasant, agreeable flavor; and, while young and tender, are mixed in salads.
* * * * *
PURSLAIN.
Portulaca.
Purslain is a hardy, annual plant. Most of the cultivated kinds are but improved forms of the Common Purslain (P. oleracea), introduced into this country from Europe, and so troublesome as a weed in most vegetable gardens.
Stem usually about a foot in length, succulent and tender; leaves fleshy, broad and round at the ends, and tapering to the stalk; flowers yellow, resting closely in the axils of the leaves; the seeds are black, exceedingly small, and retain their germinating powers ten years.
Soil, Propagation, and Culture.--Purslain thrives well in all soils,--dry, wet, or intermediate; and is propagated by seeds sown in shallow drills at any time from April to July.
Use.--The plants may be cut for use when they have made a growth of four or five inches. They are mixed in salads, eaten boiled as Spinach, or pickled.
The species and varieties are as follow:--
COMMON PURSLAIN.
Portulaca oleracea.
Abundant in gardens, cultivated fields, and waste grounds. The Green and the Golden Purslain are improved sub-varieties. The Common Purslain is used in all the forms in which the cultivated sorts are used; and, though some of the latter are considered more succulent, the difference in quality will scarcely repay the cost of cultivation, where the present variety would be the ceaseless competitor for the supremacy.
GOLDEN PURSLAIN.
Pourpier doré. Vil. P. oleracea var. aurea.
Similar to the Green Purslain, but differing in the paler or yellowish color of the stalks and leaves.
GREEN PURSLAIN.
Pourpier vert. Vil.
Leaves an inch and three-fourths in length, and upwards of an inch in width, deep-green.
LARGE-LEAVED GOLDEN PURSLAIN.
P. sativa.
Leaves pale yellowish-green, larger than those of the preceding sorts. The plant is a strong grower, and the leaves attain a remarkable size; but the stalks are often comparatively tough and hard, and, for salad purposes, much inferior to those of the Green or Golden varieties.
* * * * *
RAPE.
This plant is generally cultivated for its seeds, like Mustard. It is, however, sometimes grown for salad; the seeds being sown in April, and, for a succession, once in three or four weeks till August or September. Sow thickly, in drills ten or twelve inches apart, and cover half an inch deep. The soil should be rich and moist, in order to induce a rapid growth, and thus to give a tender, succulent character to the young leaves; these being the parts eaten. They are served like Lettuce, or boiled and treated as Coleworts or Spinach. For mixing with Cress or Lettuce, the plants are cut to the ground before the development of the second leaves.
The species are as follow:--
ANNUAL ROUGH-LEAVED SUMMER RAPE. Law.
Turnip Rape. Brassica rapa.
Root fusiform, small, hard, and woody; radical leaves lyrate, vivid green, and without any appearance of the glaucous bloom for which the biennial sorts are so distinguished; the stem-leaves are slightly glaucous, smooth, or nearly so,--the lower ones cut on the borders, the upper entire; the seeds are small, and similar to those of the common field turnip, of which it seems to be either a variety, or the source from which the latter has been derived.
COMMON OR WINTER RAPE. Law.
Cole-seed. Brassica napus.
Biennial; root long, tapering, hard, and woody, like that of the species before described. The leaves are smooth, thick, and fleshy, and of much the same form as those of the Annual Rough-leaved Summer Rape; this species, however, being readily distinguished, when young, by its uniformly smooth leaves. The seeds, also, are larger than those of the last-named species; but this is not to be relied upon as a distinguishing characteristic, as the size of the seeds, in this as in most other plants, is liable to be materially altered by the soil as well as by the previous culture of the seed-stock.
The seeds are sown in summer, and the crop ripens the following year. It is not adapted to the climate of the Northern States.
In England, the foregoing species are extensively cultivated both for forage and for seed; the latter being used to a limited extent for feeding birds, but chiefly for the production of rape-seed oil.
GERMAN RAPE. Law.
Annual or Early Rape. Smooth-leaved Summer Rape. Brassica præcox.
The German Rape somewhat resembles the Common or Winter. It differs in being of annual duration; in its more deeply divided leaves, more erect pods, and smaller seeds.
It would unquestionably succeed well in almost any part of the Northern or Middle States, and might prove as remunerative a crop as corn or wheat. The seeds should be sown in May; and the plants should be treated and the crop harvested, in all respects, as Mustard. It is sometimes sown broadcast, but generally in drills. When sown broadcast, eight or ten pounds of seed will be required for an acre; if in drills, three or four pounds will be sufficient. The yield varies from twenty to forty bushels per acre.
SUMMER RAPE. Law.
Colza. Wild Navew. Brassica campestris.
A biennial plant, with a tapering, hard, and fibrous root. The radical leaves are lyrate and roughish when young; those of the stem clasping, or heart-shaped, at base, and of an oblong form,--all somewhat fleshy, of a dark-green color, with a glaucous bloom. The seeds are larger than those of the Ruta-baga, or Swedish Turnip, but in other respects not distinguishable.
This species is sometimes termed Brassica campestris olifer, or Oil-rape, from its being considered the best sort of rape for cultivating for oil; and to distinguish it from the Campestris Ruta-baga, or Swedish Turnip, which is only a variety of this species.
It is not sufficiently hardy for cultivation in the Northern States.
* * * * *
ROCKET. Vil.
Garden Rocket. Roquette, of the French. Brassica eruca.
A hardy, annual plant, from the south of Europe. Stem about two feet high; leaves long, lobed or lyrate, smooth and glossy, succulent and tender; flowers pale citron-yellow, with blackish-purple veins, very fragrant, having the odor of orange-blossoms; the seeds are small, roundish, brown, or reddish-brown, and retain their vitality two years,--fifteen thousand are contained in an ounce.
Sowing and Cultivation.--The seed is sown thinly, in shallow drills a foot asunder. The first sowing may be made as early in spring as the frost will permit; afterwards, for a succession, a few seeds may be sown at intervals of three or four weeks. In poor soil and dry seasons, the leaves are liable to be tough and acrid: the seeds should, therefore, be sown in rich loam, and the plants thoroughly watered in dry weather; as, the more rapid and vigorous the growth, the more succulent and mild-flavored will be the foliage.
Use.--The leaves, while young and tender, are eaten as salad.
* * * * *
SAMPHIRE. Thomp. Mill.
Sea-fennel. Parsley-pert. St. Peter's Herb. Crithmum maritimum.
This is a half-hardy, perennial plant, common to rocky localities on the seacoast of Great Britain. Stalk from a foot to two feet in height, tender and succulent; leaves half an inch long, somewhat linear, glaucous-green, fleshy; flowers in terminal umbels,--small, white, or yellowish-white; the seeds are oblong, yellowish, and, though somewhat larger, resemble those of Fennel,--they retain their germinative power but one year.
The plant blossoms in July and August, and the seeds ripen in September and October.
Cultivation.--"It is rather difficult to cultivate in gardens; and the produce is never so good as that obtained from the places where it naturally grows. It may be propagated either by dividing the plant, or by sowing the seed in April or in autumn, soon after it is ripe. The latter period is preferable; for, if kept till spring, the seed does not germinate so well.
"It succeeds best in a light, sandy, or gravelly soil, kept constantly moist, and sprinkled occasionally with a little sea-salt or barilla, or watered with a solution of these substances, in order to supply the plant with soda, which is a necessary element of its food. It will grow still better if planted or sown among stones at the foot of walls, with a south or east aspect. This, and an occasional watering, with a solution of sea-salt, will give conditions nearly the same as those under which the plant naturally grows. As it is rather delicate, and liable to be injured by frost, it should be protected by dry litter or leaves during the winter. Towards the end of summer, the leaves may be cut for use."--Thomp.
Use.--The leaves have a warm, pleasant, aromatic flavor; and, when pickled in vinegar, are used in salads and as a seasoning.
GOLDEN SAMPHIRE. Thomp.
Inula crithmifolia.
A hardy perennial, growing, like the preceding, naturally, on the marshes and seacoast of Great Britain. The stalk is a foot and a half in height, erect, with clusters of small, fleshy leaves; flowers yellow, in small, umbel-like clusters.
Propagation and Cultivation.--It may be propagated by seeds, or by a division of the roots. It thrives best in a shady situation, and requires frequent watering. If salt be occasionally dissolved in the water, it will promote the growth of the plants, and render the branches and foliage more succulent and tender.
Use.--The fleshy leaves and the young branches are pickled in vinegar, and added to salads as a relish. The plant, however, has none of the pleasant aromatic flavor of the true Samphire, though often sold under the name, and used as a substitute.
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SCURVY-GRASS.
Cochlearia officinalis.
This is a hardy, annual, maritime plant, common to the seacoast of France and Great Britain. The root-leaves spread regularly from a common centre, are heart-shaped, fleshy, smooth, and glossy,--those of the stem sessile, oblong, and toothed on the margin; the stalks are numerous, and from six inches to a foot in height; the flowers are small, white, and produced in compact groups, or clusters; the seeds are small, oval, a little angular, and retain their vitality three years.
Soil, Sowing, and Cultivation.--It succeeds best in moist, sandy soil; and flourishes in shady situations. Sow the seeds in August, soon after they ripen, in shallow drills eight or ten inches apart; and, while the plants are young, thin them to five or six inches apart in the rows. The plants taken up in thinning may be transplanted, and new beds formed if occasion require. The growing crop should be kept free from weeds, and liberally watered in dry weather. In the following spring, the leaves will be fit for the table. Those plants not cut for use will flower in June, and the seeds will ripen in July. The seeds seldom vegetate well if sown late in spring, or during warm, dry weather.
Use.--The radical leaves are used as a salad, and are sometimes mixed with Cress. When bruised, they emit an unpleasant odor; and have an acrid, bitter taste when eaten. The plant is more generally used for medicinal purposes than as an esculent.
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SNAILS.
Snail Trefoil. Medicago orbicularis.
From the south of Europe. It is a hardy, annual plant, with reclining steins, compound or winged leaves, and yellow flowers. The pods, or seed-vessels, are smooth, and coiled in a singular and remarkably regular manner. As they approach maturity, they gradually change to a dark-brown color; and, seen from a short distance, have the appearance of snails feeding on the plant.
The seeds are large, flat, somewhat kidney-shaped, of a yellowish-brown color, and retain their powers of germination five years. They are usually sold in the pods, but should be taken out before planting.
Sowing and Culture.--It is propagated by seeds, which should be sown in April or May where the plants are to remain. Sow in drills fifteen inches apart. The plants should be thinned out where they are too close, and kept clean from weeds; which is all the culture they require. They will blossom in July, and the seeds will ripen in autumn.
Use.--Though entirely inoffensive, no part of the plant is used for food. The pods resemble some species of snails in a remarkable degree, and are placed on dishes of salad for the purpose of exciting curiosity, or for pleasantly surprising the guests at table.
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SWEET CICELY.
Sweet-scented Chervil. Osmorrhiza odorata. Scandix odorata.
A hardy perennial. When fully grown, the stalk is three feet or more in height; the leaves are large, and many times divided; the stems and nerves downy; the flowers are white, fragrant, and terminate the stalks in flat, spreading bunches, or umbels; the seeds are large, brown, and retain their vitality but one year.
Sowing and Culture.--It is usually grown from seeds; and is of easy cultivation, as it thrives in almost any soil or situation. When allowed to scatter its seeds after ripening in the autumn, the plants will spring up spontaneously in great numbers in the following April or May, and may then be transplanted where they are to remain; or the seed may be sown in October, in beds, making the rows fifteen or eighteen inches apart, and thinning the plants to a foot apart in the rows. When practicable, the seed should be sown in the autumn; as it seldom vegetates well, unless subjected to the action of the winter. After the plants have become established, they will require only ordinary treatment, and yield abundantly.
Use.--"In England, the leaves were formerly put into salads; but the strong flavor of aniseed, which the whole plant possesses, renders them disagreeable to most persons. It is now not cultivated in Britain; but the leaves and roots are still used in France: the former for the same purposes as those of Chervil; the latter in soups, to which they are said to communicate an agreeable taste."--Thomp.
In this country, it is sometimes cultivated with other aromatic plants; but its use in soups, or as a seasoner or garnish, is very limited.
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TARRAGON.
Artemesia dracunculus.
A hardy, perennial plant, said to be a native of Siberia. Stalk herbaceous, about three feet in height; the leaves are long, narrow, pointed, smooth, and highly aromatic; the flowers are small, somewhat globular, greenish, and generally infertile. There is but one variety.
Soil, Planting, and Culture.--As the plants seldom produce seed, Tarragon is usually propagated by dividing the roots. Select a warm and comparatively dry situation; stir the ground deeply and thoroughly; and, in April, set the roots in rows fifteen inches apart, ten or twelve inches apart in the rows, and cover two or three inches deep. They will soon send up vigorous shoots, which may be cut for use the first season.
It is sometimes increased by cuttings, set three or four inches deep in moist earth. If seeds can be obtained, they should be sown in April or May, in a nursery-bed or in a common frame. Sow in shallow drills six or eight inches apart; and, when the plants are three or four inches high, set them out as directed for the roots. They will early become strong and stocky, and may be used in August or September. The plants are more healthy, yield more abundantly, and are of finer quality, when not allowed to run to flower.
Use.--"Tarragon is cultivated for its leaves and the points of its young shoots; both of which are used as ingredients in salads, soups, stews, pickles, and other compounds. Tarragon vinegar, so much esteemed as a fish-sauce, is made by infusion of the leaves in common vinegar. It is also added to most salads to correct their coldness. Three or four plants will be sufficient for a family."--M'Int.
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VALERIANA. Vil.
Fedia cornucopiæ. Valeriana cornucopiæ.
This is an annual plant, with a smooth, branching stem about fifteen inches high. The leaves are oblong, stemless, thick, and fleshy, and of a bright, glossy-green color; the flowers are numerous, large, rose-colored, showy, and ornamental; the seeds are oblong, yellowish, somewhat vesiculous, and retain their vitality five years,--twenty-two hundred are contained in an ounce.
Soil and Culture.--It succeeds best in a light, warm soil. Prepare a bed four feet and a half wide, spade it thoroughly over, rake the surface smooth and fine, and sow the seed in drills fourteen inches apart. The first sowing should be made the last of April, or early in May; and afterwards, for a succession, sow a row or two every fortnight till July.
Use.--It is used as a salad, and is said to be superior to the Common Fetticus, or Corn-salad.
When in blossom, the plant presents a beautiful appearance, and well deserves a place in the flower-garden.
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WATER-CRESS.
Sisymbrium nasturtium. Nasturtium officinale.
Water-cress is a hardy, aquatic perennial; and is found growing naturally, in considerable abundance, about ponds, and in ditches and small running streams. When in blossom, the plant is about two feet in height, or length; the leaves are winged, with five or six pairs of rounded leaflets, and, in deep water, are often immersed, or float upon the surface; the flowers are small, white, four-petaled, and terminate the stalks in loose spikes; the seeds are very small, reddish-brown, and retain their powers of germination five years,--nearly a hundred and twenty thousand are contained in an ounce.
Planting and Culture.--"Water-cress is of the best quality when grown in running streams and gravelly soil." The roots may be planted in spring, in situations where the water is from four to eight inches deep. After they are established, the plants will rapidly increase, both from the natural distribution of the seeds and the spreading of the roots, and soon entirely cover the surface of the water with foliage. It may be grown with trifling cost in any small collection of water, and can be easily introduced by dropping a few plants about the borders at the time of the ripening of the seeds. In many localities, it is found growing in spontaneous abundance; and one of the best and most healthful of salads may be obtained for the mere labor of gathering.
Varieties.--There are three described varieties,--the Green-leaved, the Small Brown-leaved, and the Large Brown-leaved. These differ slightly, if at all, in flavor; though the Brown-leaved is generally preferred: having a fine appearance, and a small proportion of stalk to the leaves, it is most salable in the market. The variations in foliage and habit do not appear to be caused by the quantity or quality of the water in which the plants are grown, as the three kinds are found growing together. "The Green-leaved is the easiest of cultivation, and the Small Brown-leaved is the hardiest. The Large Brown-leaved is the best, and is the only one which can be well grown in situations where shallow water is not to be obtained."--Trans.
Gathering and Use.--"The shoots are cut for market, not broken off, as is the usual mode of gathering Cress in its natural state, and which is found to be very injurious to the plants in the beds. After they have been cut about three times, they begin to stock; and then, the oftener they are cut, the better. In summer, it is necessary to keep them very closely cut; and in water of a proper depth, and with a good soil, each bed supplies a gathering once a week."
It is extensively employed as an early spring salad; and, on account of its warm and pleasant taste, is by many persons preferred to all other salad plants.
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WINTER-CRESS.
Barbarea. American Winter-cress. Belle-Isle Cress. Scurvy-grass, of some localities. Barbarea præcox.
Stems from twelve to fifteen inches high; leaves lyrate, the terminal lobe round; flowers small, in erect, loose, terminal spikes, or groups; the seeds are small, wrinkled, of a grayish color, and retain their vitality three years. Introduced from Europe, and naturalized in the Northern States.
COMMON WINTER-CRESS, OR YELLOW ROCKET.
Barbarea vulgaris.
This species somewhat resembles the foregoing; and, like it, grows naturally in moist, shady situations. It is distinguished by its longer, more erect, and more slender pods.
Soil and Cultivation.--Both of the species are hardy, perennial plants; and are raised from seeds, which should be sown in April or May, in shallow drills a foot apart. For a succession, a few seeds may be sown at intervals of three or four weeks till August. For winter use, sow, and subsequently cultivate, as Winter Spinach.
Use.--As soon as the plants have made sufficient growth, they may be cut for use. The outer leaves should be first gathered, and the flower-stalks cut or nipped off as they make their appearance, in order to render the plants strong and stocky, and to promote the growth of the leaves; these being the parts of the plants used. They are served as Cress, which they resemble in flavor.
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WOOD-SORREL.
Oxalis acetocella.
Wood-sorrel is a hardy, perennial plant; growing naturally in woods, in cool and shaded situations. The leaves are radical, inversely heart-shaped, and produced three together at the extremity of quite a long stem, or petiole; the flower-stalk is entirely leafless, and supports a solitary bell-shaped flower, the petals of which are white, finely lined or striped with purple; the seed-vessels are of an oblong form, five-angled, and, when ripe, burst open by the touch, in the manner of those of the Impatiens noli me tangere, or Common Balsam, of the flower-garden; the seeds are quite small, and of a reddish-brown color.
The flowers are produced in May and June, and the seeds ripen in July.
Propagation and Culture.--It may be propagated either by seeds or by dividing the roots. The soil should be rich and moist; and the seeds may be sown in April or May, in shallow drills ten or twelve inches apart; or the roots may be divided in spring or autumn, and set in rows the same distance asunder.
Use.--The leaves possess a pleasant, acid taste; and are mixed with salads, to which they impart an agreeable, refreshing flavor. The plant is considered one of the most valuable of all vegetables cultivated for their acid properties.
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WORMS.
Astragalus hamosus.
A hardy, annual plant, indigenous to the south of Europe. Stem ten or twelve inches long, recumbent; leaves pinnate, with ten or twelve pairs of quite small leaflets; flowers yellow, produced five or six together at the extremity of quite a long stem, or peduncle; the seed-pods are about two inches long, nearly a fourth of an inch thick, peculiarly bent or curved, and contain ten or twelve brown seeds.
There is but one species or variety cultivated.
Sowing and Culture.--The plants may be started by sowing the seeds in a hot-bed in March, or the seeds may be sown in the open ground in May. They are cultivated in rows fourteen inches apart, and ten or twelve inches apart in the rows; and are also grown in groups, or hills, three or four together. The plants blossom in July, and the pods attain their growth in August and September.
Use.--The pods, in their green state, much resemble some descriptions of worms; and, like Caterpillars (Scorpiurus) and Snails (Medicago), are sometimes placed on dishes of salad to excite curiosity, or for pleasantly surprising the guests at table. Though inoffensive, they are seldom eaten.
VIII. OLERACEOUS PLANTS
Angelica. Anise. Balm. Basil. Borage. Caraway. Clary. Coriander. Costmary. Cumin. Dill. Fennel. Lavender. Lovage. Marigold. Marjoram. Nigella. Parsley. Peppermint. Rosemary. Sage. Savory. Spearmint. Tansy. Thyme.
ANGELICA.
Angelica archangelica.
Angelica is a native of Hungary and Germany, and is also indigenous to Great Britain. It is a hardy, biennial plant, with a cylindrical, hollow, herbaceous stem four or five feet high. The radical leaves are from two to three feet long, compound, or divided in threes, purplish-red at the base; flowers small, pale-yellow, in large, terminal, spherical umbels; the seeds are of a yellowish color, oblong, flattened on one side, convex on the opposite, ribbed, thin, and membraneous on the borders, and retain their germinative power but a single season,--nearly six thousand are contained in an ounce.
Soil and Culture.--The plants thrive best in damp, and even wet, localities; but may be grown in any good, well-enriched soil. As the seeds soon lose their vitality, they should be sown in August, immediately after ripening. Make a small bed, sow the seeds in drills ten inches apart, and cover three-fourths of an inch deep. In this seed-bed allow the young plants to remain until the following spring, when they should be set out two feet asunder in each direction. The stalks will be fit for use in May and June of the following year. If the flower-stem is removed as it makes its appearance, the plants will put forth fresh sprouts from the sides of the root, and survive three years; but when allowed to blossom, and to perfect their seeds, the plants soon after perish.
Use.--Angelica was formerly used, after being blanched, as a salad, like Celery. In the vicinity of London, it is raised to a considerable extent for confectioners,--the tender leaf-stalks and flowering-shoots serving as a basis for sweetmeat. The seeds are sometimes employed for flavoring liquors.
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ANISE.
Pimpinella anisum.
This is an annual plant, originally from Egypt. Though but little cultivated in this country, neither our soil nor climate is unsuitable; and it might be successfully, if not profitably, grown in the Middle and warmer parts of the Northern States. Large quantities of the seeds are raised on the Island of Malta and in some parts of Spain, and thence exported to England and America for the purpose of distillation or expression.
The stem is from a foot and a half to two feet high, and separates into numerous slender branches; the leaves are twice pinnate,--those of the upper part of the stalk divided into three or four narrow segments; the flowers are small, yellowish-white, produced in large, loose umbels, at the extremities of the branches; the seeds are of a grayish-green color, oblong, slightly bent or curved, convex and ribbed on one side, concave on the opposite, and terminate in a small bunch, or knob,--nearly nine thousand are contained in an ounce, and they retain their vitality three years.
Culture.--Anise is raised from seeds sown annually, and thrives best in light, rich, comparatively dry soil, and in a warm, sunny situation. As early in spring as the appearance of settled warm weather, lay out a bed four feet and a half wide, and as long as may be desired; spread on a thin dressing of well-digested compost, and spade it thoroughly in with the soil; then rake the surface fine and even, and sow the seed thinly in drills twelve inches apart and an inch deep, allowing an ounce of seed for a hundred and fifty linear feet. When the plants are an inch high, thin them to five or six inches apart; and, as they increase in size, keep the ground between the rows loose, and the spaces between the plants free from weeds. Towards the close of the season, the seed will be ripened sufficiently for harvesting; when the plants should be pulled up, and spread in a sunny place until dry. The seed should then be threshed from the heads, riddled and winnowed, and again exposed to the sun, or spread in a dry, airy room, to evaporate any remaining moisture; when they will be ready for use or the market.
In field culture, the grower should follow substantially the same method, with the exception of laying out the ground; omitting, in this particular, its division into beds. After the land has been well prepared, the seed can be sown with great facility by a common sowing-machine, adjusted as when employed for sowing carrots. At the time of harvesting, the plants may be cut near the surface of the ground, or even mowed; thereby avoiding much of the inconvenience arising from the soil that adheres to the roots when the plants are pulled up.
There are no varieties.
Use.--The seeds and leaves are used both in medicine and cookery. The green leaves are employed in salads, and for seasoning and garnishing, like Fennel. The seeds have a fragrant odor, a pleasant, warm taste, and are highly carminative. Large quantities are used for distillation and in flavoring liquors, and also for expressing for their essential oil.
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BALM.
Melissa officinalis.
A hardy, perennial plant, from the south of Europe. The stalk is four-sided, branching, and from two to three feet high; leaves opposite, in pairs, ovate, toothed on the borders; the flowers are small, nearly white, produced in spikes, or clusters, at or near the top of the plant.
Soil, Propagation, and Culture.--Any warm, mellow, garden soil is suited to its growth. It is generally propagated by dividing the roots, which may be done either in spring or in autumn. After thoroughly stirring the soil, set the roots in rows fifteen inches apart, and a foot apart in the rows. Under good management, the plants will soon completely cover the surface of the ground, and the bed will not need renewal for many years.
Gathering.--If required for drying, the plants should be cut as they come into flower, separating the stems at the surface of the ground. They should not be exposed to the sun in drying, but placed in an airy, shady place, and allowed to dry gradually. The leaves, in their green state, may be taken directly from the plants as they are required for use.
Use.--The plant has a pleasant, lemon-like odor; an agreeable, aromatic taste; and, in flavoring certain dishes, is used as a substitute for lemon-thyme. It is beneficial in hemorrhage, and other diseases of the lungs; and, in the form of tea, constitutes a cooling and grateful diluent in fevers. A mixture of balm and honey, or sugar, is sometimes applied to the interior of beehives, just previous to receiving the swarm, for the purpose of "attaching the colony to its new settlement."
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BASIL.
Ocymum.
There are two species of Basil cultivated in gardens; viz., the Common Sweet Basil (O. basilicum) and the Small Bush Basil (O. minimum). Of the Common Sweet Basil, there are three varieties; and of the Bush Basil, two varieties. They are all annuals, and are grown from seeds, which are black, small, oblong, and retain their vitality from six to ten years.
COMMON SWEET BASIL.
Large Sweet Basil. Ocymum basilicum.
Stem from a foot to a foot and a half in height; leaves comparatively large, green, ovate, sharply pointed; flowers white, in whorls at the extremities of the stems and branches. The whole plant, when bruised, is highly aromatic; having the odor and flavor of cloves.
The seeds of the Common Sweet Basil, and also those of the two following varieties, may be sown in a hot-bed in March, and the plants set out in May in rows a foot apart, and five or six inches apart in the rows; or the seeds may be sown in the open ground the last of April or early in May, and the plants thinned while young, as directed for transplanting. In removing the plants from the hot-bed, retain as much of the earth about the roots as possible; water freely as soon as transplanted, and also in dry weather; and they will soon yield an abundance of tender stems and leaves.
Varieties.--
PURPLE BASIL.
Basilic grand violet. Vil.
Leaves and flowers purple. When grown in sunny situations, the leaf-stems and young branches are also purple. In other respects, the variety is similar to the Common Sweet Basil. Its properties and uses are the same.
LETTUCE-LEAVED BASIL. Vil.
The leaves of this variety are large, pale-green, wrinkled and blistered like those of some kinds of Lettuce: whence the name. It resembles the foregoing varieties in taste and odor, and is used for the same purposes.
BUSH BASIL.
Ocymum minimum.
The Bush Basils are small, low-growing, branching plants; and are propagated and cultivated like the Common Sweet Basil.
GREEN BUSH BASIL.
Basilic fin vert. Vil.
Stem about eight inches high; leaves small, green, oval; flowers white, produced in whorls about the upper portion of the principal stalk and towards the extremities of the branches.
PURPLE BUSH BASIL.
Basilic fin violet. Vil.
Leaves purple. In other respects, similar to the Green Bush Basil.
Use.--The leaves and young branches have a strong, clove-like taste and odor, and are used in highly seasoned soups and meats. They are also sometimes added to salads. For winter use, the stalks are cut while in flower, dried, powdered, and preserved, like other pot-herbs.
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BORAGE.
Borago officinalis.
Borage is generally classed as a hardy annual, though it is sometimes biennial. Stem two feet high; the leaves are oval, alternate, and, in common with the stalk and branches, thickly set with stiff, bristly hairs; the flowers are large and showy,--they are red, white, or blue, and often measure more than an inch in diameter; the seeds are large, oblong, slightly curved, and retain their germinative property three years.
Soil and Cultivation.--Borage thrives best in light, dry soil. The seeds are sown in April or May, in drills ten or twelve inches apart, and half an inch deep. They should be sown quite thinly, or so as to secure a plant for every six or eight inches; to which distance they should be thinned. When a continued supply is required, a second sowing should be made in July. The plants seed abundantly; and, when once introduced into the garden, spring up spontaneously.
Use.--The plant is rarely cultivated and little used in this country. It is sometimes employed as a pot-herb, and the young shoots are occasionally mixed in salads. They are also sometimes boiled and used as Spinach. The flowers make a beautiful garnish, and it is well worthy cultivation as an ornamental plant. "The stalks and foliage contain a large proportion of nitre; and, when dried, burn like match-paper."
Varieties.--There are several varieties, differing slightly, except in the color of the flowers; the Red-flowering, White-flowering, and Blue-flowering being the principal. A variety, with variegated foliage, is described by some authors. Miller states that "they generally retain their distinctions from seeds."
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CARAWAY.
Carum carui.
The Common Caraway is a hardy, biennial plant; a native of various parts of Europe; and, to a considerable extent, naturalized in this country. The root is long and tapering, of a yellowish-white color, and about three-fourths of an inch in diameter near the crown or at its broadest part; the flesh of the root is white, fine-grained, with a flavor not unlike that of the carrot; the flower-stalks are put forth the second season, and are about two feet and a half in height, with numerous spreading branches; the leaves are finely cut, or divided, and of a deep-green color; the flowers are small, white, and produced in umbels at the ends of the branches; the seeds, which ripen quite early in the season, are of an oblong form, somewhat curved, furrowed, slightly tapering towards the extremities, of a clear olive-brown color, and pleasant, aromatic flavor and odor,--nearly eight thousand five hundred seeds are contained in an ounce, and they retain their vitality three years.
Soil and Cultivation.--Caraway is one of the hardiest of plants, and succeeds well in almost any soil or situation. In the coldest parts of the United States, and even in the Canadas, it is naturalized to such an extent about fields and mowing lands, as to be obtained in great abundance for the mere labor of cutting up the plants as the ripening of the seeds takes place.
When cultivated, the sowing may be made in April or May: but, if sown just after ripening, the seeds not only vegetate with greater certainty, but the plants often flower the ensuing season; thus saving a summer's growth. Sow in drills twelve or fifteen inches apart, and cover half an inch deep. When the plants are well up, thin to six or eight inches apart, and keep the ground loose, and free from weeds. The seeds will ripen in the July of the year after sowing. For other methods of culture, see CORIANDER.
Use.--It is principally cultivated for its seeds, which constitute an article of some commercial importance; a large proportion, however, of the consumption in this country being supplied by importation from Europe. They are extensively employed by confectioners, and also for distillation. They are also mixed in cake, and, by the Dutch, introduced into cheese.
It is sometimes cultivated for its young leaves, which are used in soups and salads; or as a pot-herb, like Parsley. The roots are boiled in the manner of the Carrot or Parsnip, and by some preferred to these vegetables; the flavor being considered pleasant and delicate.
There are no described varieties.
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CLARY. Loud.
Clary Sage. Salvia sclarea.
Clary is a hardy, biennial plant. It is indigenous to the south of Europe, and has been cultivated in gardens for upwards of three centuries. The radical leaves are large, rough, wrinkled, oblong-heart-shaped, and toothed on the margin; stalk two feet high, four-sided, clammy to the touch; flowers pale-blue, in loose, terminal spikes; seeds round, brownish, and, like others of the family, produced four together,--they retain their vitality two years.
Sowing and Culture.--It is generally grown from seeds, which are sown annually in April or May, in drills fifteen or eighteen inches apart, and half or three-fourths of an inch deep. When the young plants are two or three inches high, thin them to ten or twelve inches apart, and treat the growing crop in the usual form during summer. The leaves will be in perfection in the ensuing autumn, winter, and spring; and the plants will blossom, and produce their seeds, in the following summer.
Use.--The leaves are used for flavoring soups, to which they impart a strong, peculiar flavor, agreeable to some, but unpleasant to most persons. It has some of the properties of Common Sage, and is occasionally used as a substitute.
The plant is seldom employed in American cookery, and is little cultivated.
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CORIANDER. Law.
Coriandrum sativum.
A hardy annual, supposed to have been introduced from the south of Europe, but now naturalized in almost all temperate climates where it has once been cultivated.
Stem about two feet in height, generally erect, but, as the seeds approach maturity, often acquiring a drooping habit; stem-leaves more finely cut or divided than those proceeding directly from the root, and all possessed of a strong and somewhat disagreeable odor. The generic name is derived from Koris (a bug), with reference to the peculiar smell of its foliage. Flowers white, produced on the top of the plant, at the extremities of the branches, in flat, spreading umbels, or bunches; seeds globular, about an eighth of an inch in diameter, of a yellowish-brown color, with a warm, pleasant, aromatic taste,--they become quite light and hollow by age, and are often affected by insects in the manner of seed-pease. Though they will sometimes vegetate when kept for a longer period, they are not considered good when more than two years old.
Propagation and Cultivation.--Like all annuals, it is propagated from seed, which should be sown in April or May, in good, rich, mellow soil well pulverized. Sow in drills made fourteen or sixteen inches asunder and about three-fourths of an inch in depth, and thin to nine inches in the rows. It soon runs to flower and seed, and will be ready for harvesting in July or August.
In the south of England, Coriander is generally cultivated in connection with Caraway; eighteen pounds of Caraway seed being mixed with fifteen pounds of Coriander for an acre. The Coriander, being an annual, yields its crop the first season. After being cut, it is left on the field to dry, and the seeds afterwards beaten out on cloths; the facility with which these are detached not admitting of the usual method of harvesting.
An unquestionably preferable mode of cultivation would be to sow them both in drills alternately, by which means the Caraway would be more easily hoed and cleaned after the removal of the Coriander.
Use.--It is generally cultivated for its seeds, which are used to a considerable extent by druggists, confectioners, and distillers. In the garden, it is sometimes sown for its leaves, which are used as Chervil in soups and salads; but, when so required, a sowing should be made at intervals of three or four weeks.
There are no varieties.
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COSTMARY, OR ALECOST.
Balsamita vulgaris.
Costmary is a hardy, perennial plant, with a hard, creeping root, and an erect, branching stem two or three feet high. The radical leaves, which are produced on long footstalks, are oval, serrated, and of a grayish color,--those of the stalk are sessile, smaller than the radical ones, but similar in form; the flowers are deep-yellow, in erect, terminal, spreading corymbs; the seeds are small, slightly curved, and of a grayish-white color.
HOARY-LEAVED COSTMARY. Loud.
A variety with deeply divided and hoary leaves, less fragrant than the preceding.
Propagation and Cultivation.--Costmary may be cultivated in almost any description of soil or situation. It is sometimes grown from seeds, but is generally propagated by dividing the roots, which increase rapidly, and soon entirely occupy the ground. They are taken up for planting out either in spring or autumn, and should be set two feet apart in each direction. By occasionally thinning out the plants as they become too thick, a bed may be continued many years.
Use.--The plant has a soft, agreeable odor, and is sometimes used as a pot-herb for flavoring soups. The leaves are used in salads, and also for flavoring ale or beer: hence the name "Alecost."
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CUMIN.
Cuminum cyminum.
Cumin is a native of Egypt. It is a tender, annual plant, from nine to twelve inches high. The leaves are deep-green, and divided into long, linear segments, not unlike those of Fennel; the flowers are white or pale-blue, and produced in small umbels at the extremities of the branches; the seeds are long, furrowed, of a pale-brownish color, and somewhat resemble those of Anise,--about seven thousand are contained in an ounce, and they retain their power of germination three years.
Soil and Cultivation.--Cumin requires a light, warm-loamy soil. The seed should be sown about the beginning of May, in drills fourteen inches apart and half an inch deep. When the plants are well up, they should be thinned to three or four inches apart in the lines. The treatment of the growing crop, and the usual method of harvesting, are the same as directed for Anise or Coriander.
The seed is sometimes sown broadcast; the soil being first finely pulverized, and raked smooth and even. This may be successfully practised upon land naturally light and warm, if free from weeds.
Though a native of a warm climate, Cumin may be successfully grown throughout the Middle States, and in the warmer portions of the Northern and Eastern.
Use.--The plant is cultivated for its seeds, which are carminative, and used as those of Caraway and Coriander. They are sometimes employed for flavoring spirits.
The plant is rarely grown, and the seeds are but little used, in the United States. There are no varieties.
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DILL. Loud.
Anethum graveolens.
Dill is a hardy, biennial plant. There is but one species cultivated, and there are no varieties. The stem is erect and slender, and the leaves are finely divided; the flowers are produced in June and July of the second year, and the seeds ripen in August. The plant resembles Fennel in its general character, though smaller and less vigorous.
Propagation and Cultivation.--Dill flourishes best in light soil, and is propagated from seeds sown annually. As these retain their vitality but a single year, and, even when kept through the winter, vegetate slowly, they are frequently sown late in summer, or early in autumn, immediately after ripening. The drills are made a foot apart, and the seeds covered half an inch deep. The young plants should be thinned to six inches apart in the rows; and the leaves may be gathered for use from July till winter, and in the following spring till the plants have run to flower.
Use.--"The whole plant is strongly aromatic. Its leaves are used to give flavor to pickles, particularly cucumbers; and occasionally are added to soups and sauces: the seeds are also employed for flavoring pickles. All parts of the plant are used in medical preparations."
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FENNEL.
Foeniculum.
Three species of Fennel are cultivated, differing not only in habit, but, to some extent, in their properties. The stems vary in height from two to four feet, and are smooth and branching; the flowers are yellow, in terminal umbels; the seeds are oval, ribbed, or furrowed, generally of a light, yellowish-brown color, and retain their vitality from three to five years.
Soil, Sowing, and Culture.--A light, dry soil is best adapted to the growth of Fennel; though it will thrive well in any good garden loam. It is generally raised from seeds, which may be sown in August, just after they ripen, or in April and May. They are generally sown in drills fifteen or eighteen inches apart, and about three-fourths of an inch deep,--the young plants being afterwards thinned to twelve or fifteen inches apart in the drills; or a few seeds may be scattered broadcast on a small seed-bed, raked in, and the seedlings, when two or three inches high, transplanted to rows, as before directed.
Fennel is sometimes propagated by a division of the roots and by offsets. This may be performed either in spring, summer, or autumn. Set the roots, or shoots, fifteen inches apart in each direction; and they will soon become stocky plants, and afford an abundance of leaves for use. When cultivated for its foliage, the flowering-shoots should be cut off as they may make their appearance, to encourage the production of fresh shoots, and to give size and succulency to the leaves.
The species and their peculiar uses are as follow:--
COMMON OR BITTER FENNEL.
Foeniculum vulgare.
A perennial species, with deep, strong, fleshy roots; stem three or four feet high, with finely divided leaves. The flowers are put forth in July, and the seeds ripen in August: the latter are about one-sixth of an inch long, of a greenish-brown color, and, in common with the leaves, of a decidedly bitter taste.
Soil, Sowing, and Culture.--This species may be grown in almost any soil or situation. Sow the seeds soon after ripening, or early in spring. The plants require no other care than to be kept free from weeds.
Use.--The young leaves are used for flavoring soups and sauces, and are sometimes mixed in salads. The seeds are carminative, and the roots and leaves have reputed medicinal properties.
DARK-GREEN LEAVED. Loud.
A variety with deep-green foliage. Its uses, and modes of culture, are the same as those of the foregoing species.
FLORENCE OR ITALIAN FENNEL. Mill.
Finochio. Sweet Azorian Fennel. Foeniculum dulce.
Quite distinct from the Common Fennel, and generally cultivated as an annual. The stem, which is about eighteen inches high, expands near the surface of the ground; and, when divided horizontally, presents an oval form, measuring four or five inches in one direction, and two inches in the opposite. The flowers are produced in umbels, as in the other species. The seeds are slender, yellow, somewhat curved, sweet and pleasant to the taste, and of an agreeable, anise-like odor.
Sowing and Culture.--The plant should be grown in well-enriched, mellow soil. Sow the seeds in April or May, thinly, in shallow drills from eighteen inches to two feet apart. Half an ounce of seeds will be sufficient for fifty feet of drill; or, by transplanting when they spring up too thickly, will furnish seedlings for a hundred feet.
The plants should be eight or ten inches apart; and, when the stems have attained a sufficient size, they should be earthed up for blanching, in the manner of Celery. Two or three weeks will be required to perfect this; and, if properly treated, the stems will be found white, crisp, tender, and excellent.
Plants from the first sowing will be ready for use in July and August. For a succession, a few seeds may be sown in June, or early in July.
Use.--The blanched portion of the stem is mixed in soups, and also used as a salad. It is served like Celery, with various condiments; and possesses a sweet, pleasant, aromatic taste.
It is a popular vegetable in some parts of Europe, but is rarely cultivated in this country.
SWEET FENNEL. Mill.
Malta Fennel. Foeniculum officinale.
By some writers, this has been described as a variety of the Common Fennel; but its distinctive character appears to be permanent under all conditions of soil and culture. The leaves are long and narrow, and, compared with those of the last named, less abundant, and not so pointed. The stem is also shorter, and the seeds are longer, more slender, and lighter colored.
Sowing and Cultivation.--It is propagated and cultivated as the Common Fennel.
Use.--It is used in all the forms of the last named. The seeds have a sweet, pleasant, anise-like taste and odor, are strongly carminative, and yield an essential oil by distillation.
LAVENDER.
Lavendula spica.
Lavender is a hardy, low-growing, shrubby plant, originally from the south of Europe. There are three varieties; and they may be propagated from seeds by dividing the roots, or by slips, or cuttings.
The seeds are sown in April or May. Make the surface of the soil light and friable, and sow the seeds in very shallow drills six inches apart. When the seedlings are two or three inches high, transplant them in rows two feet apart, and a foot apart in the rows.
The slips, or cuttings, are set in April, two-thirds of the length in the soil, and in rows as directed for transplanting seedlings. Shade them for a few days, until they have taken root; after which, little care will be required beyond the ordinary form of cultivation.
The roots may be divided either in spring or autumn. Though Lavender grows most luxuriantly in rich soil, the plants are more highly aromatic, and less liable to injury from severe weather, when grown in light, warm, and gravelly situations.
Use.--Lavender is sometimes used as a pot-herb, "but is more esteemed for the distilled water which bears its name, and which, together with the oil, is obtained in the greatest proportion from the flower-spikes which have been gathered in dry weather, and just before the flowers are fully expanded. The oil of lavender is obtained in the ratio of an ounce to sixty ounces of dried flowers."--Law.
"In the neighborhood of Mitcham, in Surrey, England, upwards of two hundred acres are occupied with Lavender alone."--Thomp.
Varieties.--
BROAD-LEAVED LAVENDER. Mill.
Spike Lavender.
Compared with the Common Lavender, the branches of this variety are shorter, more sturdy, and thicker set with leaves; the latter being short and broad.
The Broad-leaved Lavender rarely blossoms; but, when this occurs, the leaves of the flower-stalk are differently formed from those of the lower part of the plant, and somewhat resemble those of the Common variety. The stalks are taller, the spikes lower and looser, and the flowers smaller, than those of the last named.
COMMON OR BLUE-FLOWERING LAVENDER.
Narrow-leaved Blue-flowering.
A shrubby, thickly-branched plant, from a foot to upwards of three feet high, according to the depth and quality of the soil in which it is cultivated. The leaves are opposite, long, and narrow; flowers blue or purple, in spikes.
The whole plant is remarkably aromatic; but the flowers have this property in a greater degree than the foliage or branches. The plants are in perfection in July and August, and are cut for drying or distillation, close to the stem, as the blossoms on the lower part of the spikes begin to change to a brown color.
NARROW-LEAVED WHITE-FLOWERING.
A sub-variety of the Common Lavender, with white flowers. It is of smaller growth and less hardy than the last named, though not so generally cultivated. Its properties and uses are the same.
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LOVAGE.
Ligusticum levisticum.
Lovage is a hardy, perennial plant, with a hollow, channelled, branching stem six or seven feet high. The leaves are winged, smooth, deep, glossy-green, and somewhat resemble those of Celery; the flowers are yellow, and produced in large umbels at the extremities of the branches; the seeds are oblong, striated, of a pale, yellowish-brown color, and retain their germinative powers but one year.
Soil, Propagation, and Culture.--Lovage requires a deep, rich, moist soil; and is propagated either by seeds or dividing: the roots. The seeds should be sown in August, or immediately after ripening; as, when sown in spring, they seldom vegetate well. When the young plants have made a growth of two or three inches, they should be transplanted three feet apart in each direction; and, when well established, will require little care, and continue for many years.
The roots may be divided in spring or autumn; and should be set three feet apart, as directed for seedling plants; covering the crowns three inches deep.
Use.--Lovage was formerly cultivated as an esculent; but its use as such has long been discontinued. It is now cultivated for its medicinal properties; both the seeds and roots being used. The latter are large, fleshy, dark-brown without, yellowish within, and of a peculiar, warm, aromatic taste. They are sliced and dried, and in this state are used to some extent by confectioners. The seeds are similar to the roots in taste and odor, but have greater pungency. In appearance and flavor, the plant is not unlike Celery.
There are no varieties.
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MARIGOLD.
Pot Marigold. Calendula officinalis.
This hardy annual is a native of France and the south of Europe. Aside from its value for culinary purposes, its large, deep, orange-yellow flowers are showy and attractive; and it is frequently cultivated as an ornamental plant. The stem is about a foot in height; the leaves are thick and fleshy, rounded at the ends, and taper to the stalk; the flowers are an inch and a half or two inches in diameter, yellow,--differing, however, in depth of color, and single or double according to the variety; the seeds are large, light-brown, much curved and contorted, and very irregular both in their size and form.
Sowing and Cultivation.--The plant is of easy culture. The seeds are sown in autumn, just after ripening; or in April, May, or June. Make the drills a foot apart; cover the seed three-fourths of an inch deep; and, when the plants are an inch or two inches high, thin them to eight or ten inches apart. Plants from the first sowing will blossom early in July, and continue in bloom until destroyed by frost.
Gathering.--The flowers are gathered when fully expanded, divested of their calyxes, and spread in a light, airy, shaded situation until they are thoroughly dried. They are gathered as they come to perfection; for, when the plants are allowed to ripen their seeds, they become much less productive.
To raise Seed.--Leave one or two of the finest plants, without cutting the flowers; and, when the heads of seed begin to change from a green to a brownish color, cut them off, spread them a short time as directed for drying the flowers, and pack away for use.
Use.--The flowers are used in various parts of Europe for flavoring soups and stews, and are much esteemed. Though often grown as an ornamental plant, the flowers are but little used in this country for culinary purposes. The varieties are as follow:--
COMMON ORANGE-FLOWERED.
Flowers single, deep orange-yellow, high-flavored. It is considered the best variety for cultivation.
LEMON-FLOWERED.
This differs from the foregoing in the paler color of the flowers, which are also less aromatic. The plants are not distinguishable from those of the Common Orange-flowered.
DOUBLE ORANGE-FLOWERING.
Of the same color with the first named, but with fine, large, double ornamental flowers. The petals are flat, and rest in an imbricated manner, one on the other, as in some varieties of the Anemone. It is more productive, but less aromatic, than the Single-flowering.
DOUBLE LEMON-FLOWERING.
A variety of the second-named sort, with double flowers like those of the preceding.
To raise good seeds of either of the double-flowering kinds, all plants producing single flowers must be removed as soon as their character is known. When the single and double-flowering plants are suffered to grow together, the latter rapidly deteriorate, and often ultimately become single-flowering.
CHILDING, OR PROLIFEROUS MARIGOLD. Loud.
This variety produces numerous small flowers from the margin of the calyx of the large central flowers. It is quite ornamental, but of little value as an esculent.
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MARJORAM.
Origanum.
COMMON MARJORAM.
Origanum vulgare.
A perennial species, with a shrubby, four-sided stem, a foot and a half high; leaves oval, opposite,--at the union of the leaves with the stalk, there are produced several smaller leaves, which, in size and form, resemble those of the Common Sweet Marjoram; the flowers are pale-red, or flesh-colored, and produced in rounded, terminal spikes; the plants blossom in July and August, and the seeds ripen in September.
Propagation and Culture.--It may be grown from seeds, but is generally propagated by dividing the roots, either in spring or autumn. Set them in a dry and warm situation, in rows fifteen inches apart, and ten or twelve inches from plant to plant in the rows.
The seeds may be sown in a seed-bed in April or May, and the seedlings transplanted to rows as directed for setting the roots; or they may be sown in drills fifteen inches apart, afterwards thinning out the young plants to ten inches apart in the drills.
There is a variety with white flowers, and another with variegated foliage.
Use.--The young shoots, cut at the time of flowering and dried in the shade, are used as Sweet Marjoram for seasoning soups and meats. The whole plant is highly aromatic.
SWEET MARJORAM.
Knotted Marjoram. Origanum majorana.
Sweet Marjoram is a native of Portugal. Though a biennial, it is always treated as an annual; not being sufficiently hardy to withstand the winters of the Middle or Northern States in the open ground. The plant is of low growth, with a branching stem, and oval or rounded leaves. The flowers, which appear in July and August, are of a purplish color, and produced in compact clusters, or heads, resembling knots: whence the term "Knotted Marjoram" of many localities. The seeds are brown, exceedingly small, and retain their germinative properties three years.
Sowing and Cultivation.--Sweet Marjoram is raised from seeds sown annually in April, May, or June. Its propagation, however, is generally attended with more or less difficulty, arising from the exceeding minuteness of the seeds, and the liability of the young seedlings to be destroyed by the sun before they become established. The seeds are sown in drills ten or twelve inches apart, and very thinly covered with finely pulverized loam. Coarse light matting is often placed over the bed immediately after sowing, to facilitate vegetation; and, if allowed to remain until the plants are well up, will often preserve a crop which would otherwise be destroyed.
The seeds are sometimes sown in a hot-bed, and the plants set out in May or June, in rows twelve inches apart, and six inches apart in the rows.
Gathering.--The plants, when in flower or fully developed, are cut to the ground; and, for winter use, are dried and preserved as other pot-herbs.
Use.--Sweet Marjoram is highly aromatic, and is much used, both in the green state and when dried, for flavoring broths, soups, and stuffings.
POT MARJORAM.
Origanum onites.
A perennial species, from Sicily. Stem a foot or more in height, branching; leaves oval, comparatively smooth; the flowers are small, of a purplish color, and produced in spikes.
Propagation and Cultivation.--The species is propagated, and the crop in all respects should be treated, as directed for Common Marjoram. The properties and uses of the plant are also the same. Both, however, are much inferior to the Sweet Marjoram last described.
WINTER SWEET MARJORAM. Corb.
Origanum heracleoticum.
A half-hardy perennial, from the south of Europe. Stem eighteen inches high, purplish; the leaves are opposite, oval, rounded at the ends, and resemble those of Sweet Marjoram; the flowers are white, and are put forth in July and August, in spikelets about two inches in length; the seeds ripen in September.
Propagation and Culture.--It may be grown from seeds, but is generally propagated by dividing the roots either in the spring or fall, and planting the divisions ten inches apart, in rows eighteen inches asunder. It succeeds best in dry localities, and requires no other attention than to have the soil kept loose, and free from weeds.
There is a variety with variegated leaves, but differing in no other respect from the foregoing.
Use.--The leaves and young branches are used in soups, and stuffing for meats; and should be cut when just coming into flower, and dried in the shade.
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AROMATIC NIGELLA.
Four Spices. Allspice. Black Cumin. Quatre Epices, of the French. Nigella saliva.
A hardy, annual plant from the East Indies. Stem twelve to eighteen inches high, with alternate, sessile, finely divided leaves; the flowers are large, white, variegated with blue; the seeds, which are produced in a roundish capsule, are somewhat triangular, wrinkled, of a yellowish color, and pungent, aromatic taste,--about thirteen thousand are contained in an ounce, and they retain their vitality three years. There is a species cultivated, the seeds of which are black.
Soil and Cultivation.--It is always raised from seed, and thrives best in light, warm soil. The seed may be sown from the middle of April to the middle of May. Pulverize the soil well, make the surface smooth and even, and sow in drills twelve or fourteen inches apart and about half an inch deep. When the plants are two inches high, thin them to five or six inches apart in the rows. During the summer, cultivate in the usual manner, keeping the soil loose, and watering occasionally if the weather be dry; and in August or September, or when the seed ripens, cut off the plants at the roots, spread them in an airy situation, and, when sufficiently dried, thresh out; after which, spread the seed a short time to evaporate any remaining moisture, and they will be ready for use.
Use.--The seeds have a warm, aromatic taste; and are employed in French cookery, under the name of quatre épices, or "four spices."
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PARSLEY.
Apium petroselinum.
Parsley is a hardy, biennial plant from Sardinia. The leaves of the first year are all radical, compound, rich, deep-green, smooth, and shining. When fully developed, the plant measures three or four feet in height; the flowers are small, white, in terminal umbels; the seeds are ovoid, somewhat three-sided, slightly curved, of a grayish-brown color and aromatic taste,--seven thousand are contained in an ounce, and they retain their vitality three years.
Soil and Propagation.--Parsley succeeds best in rich, mellow soil, and is propagated from seeds sown annually; an ounce of seed being allowed to a hundred and fifty feet of drill.
Sowing.--As the seed vegetates slowly,--sometimes remaining in the earth four or five weeks before the plants appear,--the sowing should be made as early in spring as the ground is in working condition. Lay out the bed of a size corresponding to the supply required, spade it deeply and thoroughly, level the surface (making it fine and smooth), and sow the seed in drills fourteen inches apart, and half an inch deep. When the plants are two or three inches high, thin them to eight or ten inches apart; being careful, in the thinning, to leave only the best and finest curled plants.
According to Lindley, the finest curled kinds will rapidly degenerate and become plain, if left to themselves; while, on the other hand, really excellent sorts may be considerably improved by careful cultivation.
The best curled Parsley is obtained by repeated transplantings. When the seedlings are two inches high, they are set in rows ten inches apart, and six inches apart in the rows. In about four weeks, they should be again transplanted to where they are to remain, in rows eighteen inches apart, and fourteen inches apart in the rows. When thus treated, the plants become remarkably close, of a regular, rosette-like form, and often entirely cover the surface of the ground. When grown for competition or for exhibition, this process of transplanting is thrice and often four times repeated.
Seed.--In autumn, select two or three of the finest curled and most symmetrical plants; allow them to remain unplucked; give a slight protection during winter; and, in the following summer, they will yield abundantly. Much care is requisite in keeping the varieties true. This is especially the case with the curled sorts. The seed-growers, who value their stock and character, select the best and finest curled plants, and allow no others to flower and seed. When the object is to improve a variety, but few seeds are saved from a plant; and, in some cases, but few seeds from a head.
Use.--The leaves of the curled varieties afford one of the most beautiful of garnishes: they are also used for flavoring soups and stews. The seeds are aromatic, and are sometimes used as a substitute for the leaves; though the flavor is much less agreeable.
Varieties.--
DWARF CURLED PARSLEY.
Curled Parsley. Sutton's Dwarf Curled. Usher's Dwarf Curled.
A fine, dwarfish, curled variety, long cultivated in England. In some gardens, it is grown in such perfection as to resemble a tuft of finely curled, green moss.
It is hardy, and slow in running to seed, but liable to degenerate, as it constantly tends to increase in size and to become less curled.
From the Dwarf Curled Parsley, by judicious cultivation and a careful selection of plants for seed, have originated many excellent sorts of stronger growth, yet retaining its finely curled and beautiful leaves.
MITCHELL'S MATCHLESS WINTER. Thomp.
A fine, curled sort, larger than the Dwarf Curled; and, on account of its remarkable hardiness, recommended as one of the best for winter culture.
MYATT'S TRIPLE-CURLED.
Myatt's Garnishing. Myatt's Extra Fine Curled. Windsor Curled.
The leaves of this variety are large and spreading, bright-green above, paler beneath. When true, the foliage is nearly as finely curled as that of the Dwarf, though the plant is much larger and stronger in its habit.
PLAIN PARSLEY. Thomp.
Common Parsley.
The leaves of this sort are plain, or not curled; and the plant produces them in greater quantity than the curled sorts. It is also somewhat hardier.
For many years, it was the principal variety grown in the gardens of this country; but has now given place to the curled sorts, which, if not of better flavor, are generally preferred, on account of their superior excellence for garnishing.
RENDLE'S TREBLE GARNISHING. Trans.
A variety of the Dwarf Curled, of larger size; the leaves being as finely curled and equally beautiful.
HAMBURG OR LARGE-ROOTED PARSLEY. M'Int.
Turnip-rooted Parsley.
A variety of the Common Plain Parsley, with stronger foliage. Though the leaves are sometimes used in the manner of those of the Common Parsley, it is generally cultivated for its fusiform, fleshy roots.
To obtain these of good size and quality, the soil should not be too rich, but deeply and thoroughly trenched. Sow the seeds in April or May, in drills a foot or fourteen inches apart, and three-fourths of an inch deep; and, when the seedlings are two or three inches high, thin them to six or eight inches apart in the rows. Cultivate during the season as carrots or parsnips; and, in October, the roots will have attained their growth, and be suitable for use. Take them up before the ground closes, cut off the tops within an inch or two of the crowns, pack in earth or sand, and store in the cellar for winter.
To raise Seeds.--Reset a few roots in April, two feet apart; or leave a few plants in the open ground during the winter. They will blossom in June and July, and ripen their seeds in August.
Use.--The roots are eaten, boiled as carrots or parsnips. In connection with the leaves, they are also mixed in soups and stews, to which they impart a pleasant, aromatic taste and odor.
NAPLES OR CELERY-LEAVED PARSLEY.
Neapolitan Parsley. Celery Parsley.
This variety somewhat resembles Celery; and, by writers on gardening, is described as a hybrid between some of the kinds of Celery and the Large-rooted or Hamburg Parsley. With the exception of their larger size, the leaves are similar to those of the Common Plain Parsley.
Use.--The leaves are sometimes employed for garnishing; but are generally blanched, and served as Celery.
Sowing and Cultivation.--The plants are started in a hot-bed in March, or the seeds may be sown in a seed-bed in the open ground in May. When the seedlings are four or five inches high, transplant to trenches two feet apart and six or eight inches deep, setting the plants a foot apart in the trenches; afterwards gather the earth gradually about the stems, in the process of cultivation; and, when they are sufficiently grown and blanched, harvest and preserve as Celery.
To raise Seeds.--Leave two or three plants unblanched. They should be eighteen inches asunder, and may remain in the open ground during winter. They will flower, and yield a plentiful supply of seeds, the following summer.
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PEPPERMINT.
Mentha piperita.
Peppermint is a hardy, perennial plant, introduced from Europe, and growing naturally in considerable abundance along the banks of small streams, and in rich, wet localities. Where once established, it spreads rapidly, and will remain a long period.
Stem smooth, erect, four-sided, and from two to three feet in height; leaves opposite, ovate, pointed, toothed on the margin; flowers purplish, or violet-blue, in terminal spikes; the seeds are small, brown, or blackish-brown, and retain their vitality four years.
Propagation and Culture.--It may be grown from seeds; but this method of propagation is rarely practised, as it is more readily increased by dividing the roots.
The agreeable odor, and peculiar, warm, pleasant flavor, of the leaves are well known. The plant, however, is little used as a pot-herb, but is principally cultivated for distillation. For the latter purpose, the ground is ploughed about the middle of May, and furrowed in one direction, as for drill-planting of potatoes; making the furrows about eighteen inches apart. The best roots for setting are those of a year's growth; and an acre of these will be required to plant ten acres anew. These are distributed along the furrows in a continuous line, and covered sometimes with the foot as the planter drops the roots, and sometimes by drawing the earth over them with a hoe. In about four weeks, the plants will be well established, and require hoeing and weeding; which is usually performed three times during the season, the cultivation being finished early in August.
"The cutting and distilling commence about the 25th of August, except in very dry seasons, when it stands two or three weeks longer, and continues until the 1st of October; during which period the plant is in full inflorescence, and the lower leaves begin to grow sear. It is raked together in small heaps; when it is suffered to wilt ten or twelve hours, if convenient.
"The next year, little is done to the mint-field but to cut and distil its product. During this (the second) year, a few weeds make their appearance, but not to the injury of the crop; though the most careful of the mint-growers go through their fields, and destroy them as much as possible. The second crop is not so productive as the first.
"The third year, little labor is required other than to harvest and distil the mint. The stem is coarser than before, and the leaves still less abundant. The weeds this year abound, and are not removed or destroyed; half or more of the product of the field often being weeds.
"The fourth year, the field is ploughed up early in the spring; and this 'renewing' is sometimes done every third year.
"The fifth year, without any further attention, produces a crop equal to the second; after which, the field is pastured and reclaimed for other crops.
"The first year produces the best quality of oil, the highest yield per acre, and the greatest amount to the quantity of herbage."--F. Stearns.
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ROSEMARY.
Rosmarinus officinalis.
Rosemary is a half-hardy, shrubby plant, from three to six feet in height. The leaves vary in form and color in the different varieties; the flowers are small, generally blue, and produced in axillary clusters; the seeds are brown, or blackish-brown, and retain their vitality four years.
Propagation and Cultivation.--Like most aromatic plants, Rosemary requires a light, dry soil; and, as it is not perfectly hardy, should have a sheltered situation. The Common Green-leaved and the Narrow-leaved are best propagated by seeds; but the variegated sorts are propagated only by cuttings or by dividing the roots. The seeds are sown in April, in a small nursery-bed; and the seedlings, when two or three inches high, transplanted in rows two feet apart, and eighteen inches apart in the rows.
When propagated by cuttings, they should be taken off in May or June, six inches long, and set two-thirds of the length in the earth, in a moist, shady situation: when well rooted, transplant as directed for seedlings. The roots may be divided in spring or autumn.
Use.--It is sometimes employed, like other pot-herbs, for flavoring meats and soups. It is used in the manufacture of "eau de Cologne," and its flowers and calyxes form a principal ingredient in the distillation of "Hungary Water." Infusions of the leaves are made in some drinks, and the young stems are used as a garnish.
There are four varieties, as follow:--
COMMON OR GREEN-LEAVED.
Leaves narrow, rounded at the ends,--the upper and under surface green; the flowers are comparatively large, and deep-colored.
The plant is of spreading habit; and, in all its parts, is more strongly aromatic than the Narrow-leaved. It is decidedly the best sort for cultivation.
GOLD-STRIPED.
A variety of the Common or Green-leaved, with foliage striped, or variegated with yellow.
This and the Silver-leaved are generally cultivated as ornamental plants. The Gold-striped is much the hardier sort, and will succeed in any locality where the Common Green-leaved is cultivated.
NARROW-LEAVED.
The plants of this variety are smaller and less branched than those of the Common or Green-leaved, and are also less fragrant; the leaves are hoary beneath, and the flowers are smaller and of a paler color.
It is used in all the forms of the Common or Green-leaved, but is less esteemed.
SILVER-STRIPED.
This is a sub-variety of the Common or Green-leaved, and the most tender of all the sorts. It is principally cultivated for its variegated foliage; the leaves being striped, or variegated with white.
Like the Gold-striped, it can only be propagated by slips or by dividing the roots, and must be well protected during winter.
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SAGE.
Salvia.
Sage is a low-growing, hardy, evergreen shrub, originally from the south of Europe. Stem from a foot and a half to two feet high,--the leaves varying in form and color in the different species and varieties; the flowers are produced in spikes, and are white, blue, red, purple, or variegated; the seeds are round, of a blackish-brown color, and retain their power of germination three years,--nearly seven thousand are contained in an ounce.
Soil and Propagation.--Sage thrives best in light, rich, loamy soil. Though easily grown from slips, or cuttings, it is, in this country, more generally propagated from seeds. These may be sown on a gentle hot-bed in March, and the plants set in the open ground in June, in rows eighteen inches apart, and a foot asunder in the rows; or the seeds may be sown in April, where the plants are to remain, thinly, in drills eighteen inches apart, and three-fourths of an inch deep. When the plants are two inches high, thin them to a foot apart in the rows; and, if needed, form fresh rows by resetting the plants taken up in thinning.
If grown from cuttings, those from the present year's growth succeed best. These should be set in June. Cut them four or five inches in length, remove the lower leaves, and set them two-thirds of their length in the earth. Water freely, and shade or protect with hand-glasses. By the last of July, or first of August, they will have taken root, and may be removed to the place where they are to remain.
It may also be propagated by dividing the roots in spring or autumn, in the manner of other hardy shrubs.
Gathering and Use.--Sage should be gathered for drying before the development of the flowering-shoots; and, when cultivated for its leaves, these shoots should be cut out as they make their appearance. When thus treated, the product is largely increased; the leaves being put forth in much greater numbers, and of larger size.
It is sometimes treated as an annual; the seeds being sown in April, in drills fourteen inches apart, and the plants cut to the ground when they have made sufficient growth for use.
The leaves are employed, both in a green and dried state, for seasoning stuffings, meats, stews, and soups. Sage is also used for flavoring cheese; and, in the form of a decoction, is sometimes employed for medical purposes.
Species and Varieties.--
BROAD-LEAVED GREEN SAGE.
Balsamic Sage. Mill.
Stems shrubby, less erect and more downy than those of the succeeding species; the leaves are comparatively large, broad, heart-shaped, woolly, toothed on the margin, and produced on long footstalks,--those of the flower-stalks are oblong, sessile, and nearly entire on the borders; the flowers are small, pale-blue, and much less abundant than those of the Common Sage.
It is rarely employed in cookery, but for medical purposes is considered more efficacious than any other species or variety.
COMMON OR RED-LEAVED.
Purple-top. Red-top. Salvia officinalis.
This is the Common Sage of the garden; and with the Green-leaved, which is but a sub-variety, the most esteemed for culinary purposes. The young stalks, the leaf-stems, and the ribs and nerves of the leaves, are purple: the young leaves are also sometimes tinged with the same color, but generally change by age to clear green.
The Red-leaved is generally regarded as possessing a higher flavor than the Green-leaved, and is preferred for cultivation; though the difference, if any really exists, is quite unimportant. The productiveness of the varieties is nearly the same. The leaves of the Green Sage are larger than those of the Red; but the latter produces them in greater numbers.
GREEN-LEAVED.
Green-top.
A variety of the preceding; the young shoots, the leaf-stalks, and the ribs and nerves of the leaves, being green.
There appears to be little permanency in the characters by which the varieties are distinguished. Both possess like properties, and are equally worthy of cultivation. From seeds of either of the sorts, plants answering to the description of the Red-leaved and Green-leaved would probably be produced, with almost every intermediate shade of color.
NARROW-LEAVED GREEN SAGE. Mill.
Sage of Virtue.
Leaves narrow, hoary, toothed towards the base; the spikes of flowers are long, and nearly leafless; flowers deep-blue; the seeds are similar to those of the Red-leaved, and produced four together in an open calyx. Compared with the Common Red-leaved or Green-leaved, the leaves are much narrower, the spikes longer and less leafy, and the flowers smaller and of a deeper color.
The variety is mild flavored, and the most esteemed of all the sorts for use in a crude state; as it is also one of the best for decoctions.
"At one period, the Dutch carried on a profitable trade with the Chinese by procuring the leaves of this species from the south of France, drying them in imitation of tea, and shipping the article to China, where, for each pound of sage, four pounds of tea were received in exchange."--M'Int.
VARIEGATED-LEAVED GREEN SAGE.
A sub-variety of the Green-leaved, with variegated foliage. It is not reproduced from seeds, and must be propagated by slips or by dividing the roots.
VARIEGATED-LEAVED RED SAGE.
This is but an accidental variety of the Common Red-leaved Sage, differing only in its variegated foliage. It can be propagated only by cuttings or by a division of the roots.
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SAVORY.
Saturjea.
The cultivated species are as follow:--
HEADED SAVORY.
Saturjea capitata.
A perennial plant, with a rigid, angular, branching stem a foot and a half high. The leaves are firm, pointed, and, when bruised, emit a strong, pleasant, mint-like odor; the flowers are white, and are produced in terminal, globular heads; the seeds are quite small, of a deep-brownish color, and retain their vitality three years.
It may be propagated from seeds or by dividing the roots; the latter method, however, being generally practised. The young shoots are used in all the forms of Summer Savory.
SHRUBBY SAVORY.
Saturjea viminea.
A shrub-like, perennial species, cultivated in the same manner as the Winter Savory. The plant has the pleasant, mint-like odor of the species first described, but is little used either in cookery or medicine.
SUMMER SAVORY.
Saturjea hortensis.
An annual species, from the south of Europe. Stem twelve or fifteen inches high, erect, rather slender, and producing its branches in pairs; the leaves are opposite, narrow, rigid, with a pleasant odor, and warm, aromatic taste; the flowers are pale-pink, or flesh-colored, and are produced at the base of the leaves, towards the upper part of the plant, each stem supporting two flowers; the seeds are quite small, deep-brown, and retain their vitality two or three years.
Propagation and Cultivation.--Summer Savory is always raised from seeds, sown annually in April or May. It thrives best in light, mellow soil; and the seed should be sown in shallow drills fourteen or fifteen inches apart. When the plants are two or three inches high, thin them to five or six inches apart in the rows, and cultivate in the usual manner during the summer.
When the plants have commenced flowering, they should be cut to the ground, tied in small bunches, and dried in an airy, shady situation.
For early use, the seeds are sometimes sown in a hot-bed on a gentle heat, and the seedlings afterwards transplanted to the open ground in rows, as directed for sowing.
Use.--The aromatic tops of the plant are used, green or dried, in stuffing meats and fowl. They are also mixed in salads, and sometimes boiled with pease and beans. It is sold in considerable quantities at all seasons of the year, in a dried and pulverized state, packed in hermetically-sealed bottles or boxes.
WINTER SAVORY. Thomp.
Saturjea montana.
A hardy, evergreen shrub, with a low, branching stem about a foot in height. The leaves are opposite, narrow, and rigid, like those of the preceding species; the flowers resemble those of the Summer Savory, but are larger and of a paler color; the seeds, which ripen in autumn, are small, dark-brown, and retain their vitality three years.
Propagation and Culture.--"It may be raised from seed sown in April or May; but is generally propagated by dividing the plants in April, or by cuttings of the young shoots taken off in April or May. The cuttings should be planted two-thirds of their length deep, on a shady border, and, if necessary, watered until they take root. When well established, they may be planted out a foot apart, in rows fifteen inches asunder. Some may also be planted as an edging.
"The plants should be trimmed every year in autumn, and the ground between the rows occasionally stirred; but, in doing this, care must be taken not to injure the roots. Fresh plantations should be made before the plants grow old and cease to produce a sufficient supply of leaves."
Use.--It is used for the same purposes as Summer Savory. The leaves and tender parts of the young branches are mixed in salads: they are also boiled with pease and beans; and, when dried and powdered, are used in stuffings for meats and fowl.
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SPEARMINT.
Green Mint. Mentha viridis.
A hardy, perennial plant, introduced from Europe, and generally cultivated in gardens, but growing naturally in considerable abundance about springs of water, and in rich, wet localities. The stem is erect, four-sided, smooth, and two feet or more in height; the leaves are opposite, in pairs, stemless, toothed on the margin, and sharply pointed; the flowers are purple, and are produced in August, in long, slender, terminal spikes; the seeds are small, oblong, of a brown color, and retain their vitality five years,--they are generally few in number, most of the flowers being abortive.
Soil, Propagation, and Culture.--It may be grown from seed, but is best propagated by a division of the roots, which are long and creeping, and readily establish themselves wherever they are planted. Spearmint thrives best in rich, moist soil; but may be grown in any good garden loam. The roots may be set either in the autumn or spring.
Where large quantities are required for marketing in the green state, or when grown for distillation, lay out the land in beds three or four feet in width, and make the drills two or three inches deep and a foot apart. Having divided the roots into convenient pieces, spread them thinly along the drills, and earth them over to a level with the surface of the bed. Thus treated, the plants will soon make their appearance; and may be gathered for use in August and September. Just before severe weather, give the beds a slight dressing of rich soil; and, the ensuing season, the plants will entirely occupy the surface of the ground.
Use.--Mint is sometimes mixed in salads, and is used for flavoring soups of all descriptions. It is often boiled with green pease; and, with the addition of sugar and vinegar, forms a much-esteemed relish for roasted lamb. It has also much reputed efficacy as a medicinal plant.
CURLED-LEAVED SPEARMINT.
A variety with curled foliage. It is a good sort for garnishing; but, for general use, is inferior to the Common or Plain-leaved species before described. Propagated by dividing the roots.
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TANSY.
Tanacetum vulgare.
Tansy is a hardy, perennial, herbaceous plant, naturalized from Europe, and abundant by roadsides and in waste places. Its stem is from two to three feet high; the leaves are finely cut and divided, twice-toothed on the margin, and of a rich, deep-green color; flowers in corymbs, deep-yellow, and produced in great abundance; the seeds are small, of a brownish color, and retain their vitality three years.
Soil and Cultivation.--Tansy may be grown in almost any soil or situation, and is propagated from seeds or by dividing the roots; the latter method being generally practised. In doing this, it is only necessary to take a few established plants, divide them into small pieces or collections of roots, and set them six inches apart, in rows a foot asunder, or in hills two feet apart in each direction. They will soon become established; and, if not disturbed, will completely occupy the ground. In most places, when once introduced, it is liable to become troublesome, as the roots not only spread rapidly, but are very tenacious of life, and eradicated with difficulty.
When cultivated for its leaves, the flowering-shoots should be cut off as they make their appearance. It is but little used, and a plant or two will afford an abundant supply.
Use.--The leaves have a strong, peculiar, aromatic odor, and a bitter taste. They were formerly employed to give color and flavor to various dishes, but are now rarely used in culinary preparations. The plant possesses the tonic and stomachic properties common to bitter herbs.
There are three cultivated varieties, as follow:--
CURLED-LEAVED TANSY.
Double Tansy. Tanacetum vulgare, var. crispum.
This differs from the Common Tansy in the frilled or curled character of the leaves, which have some resemblance to the leaves of the finer kinds of Curled Cress or Parsley. They are of a rich green color, and are sometimes employed for garnishing. In the habit of the plant, color of the flowers, odor and flavor of the leaves, the variety differs little, if at all, from the Common Tansy. It is more beautiful than the last-named; and, in all respects, much more worthy of cultivation.
Propagated only by dividing the roots.
LARGE-LEAVED TANSY.
Leaves larger than those of any other variety, but much less fragrant. It is of little value, and rarely cultivated.
VARIEGATED-LEAVED.
A variety with variegated foliage. Aside from the peculiar color of the leaves, the plant differs in no respect from the Common Tansy: it grows to the same height, the flowers are of the same color, and the leaves have the same taste and odor.
It must be propagated by dividing the roots; the variegated character of the foliage not being reproduced from seeds.
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THYME.
Thymus.
Two species of Thyme are cultivated for culinary purposes,--the Common Garden Thyme (T. vulgaris) and the Lemon or Evergreen Thyme (T. citriodorus).
They are hardy, perennial plants, of a shrubby character, and comparatively low growth. They are propagated from seeds and by dividing the roots; but the finest plants are produced from seeds.
Of the Common Garden Thyme, there are three varieties:--
BROAD-LEAVED.
The Broad-Leaved Thyme is more cultivated in this country than any other species or variety. The stem is ten or twelve inches high, shrubby, of a brownish-red color, and much branched; the leaves are small, narrow, green above, and whitish beneath; flowers purple, in terminal spikes; the seeds are black, and exceedingly small,--two hundred and thirty thousand being contained in an ounce; they retain their vitality two years.
Propagation and Cultivation.--When propagated by seeds, they are sown in April or May, thinly, in shallow drills ten or twelve inches apart. When the plants are up, they should be carefully cleared of weeds, and thinned to eight or ten inches apart, that they may have space for development. They may be cut for use as soon as they have made sufficient growth; but, for drying, the stalks are gathered as they come into flower.
If propagated by dividing the roots, the old plants should be taken up in April, and divided into as many parts as the roots and tops will admit. They are then transplanted about ten inches apart, in beds of rich, light earth; and, if the weather be dry, watered till they are well established. They may be cut for use in August and September.
Use.--The leaves have an agreeable, aromatic odor; and are used for flavoring soups, stuffings, and sauces.
NARROW-LEAVED. Mill.
The stalks of this variety are shorter than those of the Broad-leaved; the leaves also are longer, narrower, and more sharply pointed; and the flowers are larger.
It is propagated, cultivated, and used as the Broad-leaved.
VARIEGATED-LEAVED.
A sub-variety of the Broad-leaved, with variegated foliage. It is generally cultivated as an ornamental plant; and is propagated only by dividing the roots, as directed for the Broad-leaved.
LEMON THYME. Loud.
Thymus citriodorus.
A low, evergreen shrub, with a somewhat trailing stem, rarely rising more than six or eight inches high. It is readily distinguished from the Common or Broad-leaved by the soft, pleasant, lemon-like odor of the young shoots and leaves.
It is used for flavoring various dishes, and by some is preferred to the Broad-leaved.
The species is propagated from seeds by dividing the roots, and by layers and cuttings. Seedling plants, however, are said to vary in fragrance; and, when a choice stock can be obtained, it is better to propagate by dividing the plants.