Part 5 (1/2)

As a salad Dandelion has won general esteem for its wholesome medicinal qualities. Nature teaches the way to grow this plant, for she sows the seed in early summer, and we find the finest plants on dry ground, while there are none to be found in bogs and swamps. Any gravelly or chalky soil will grow good Dandelion, one fair digging without manure being a sufficient preparation for it. Sow in May or June, and thin to one foot apart every way, keeping the crop scrupulously clean by flat hoeing. Any time in the winter the roots may be lifted and forced in the same way as Sea Kale, or they may be covered with pots in spring to blanch where grown. In any case the spring growth must be made in darkness, for when green the flavour is bitter. Invalids who require this salutary salad may obtain early supplies by planting the roots in boxes in a cellar, and covering with empty boxes. Only as much water should be given as will keep the roots reasonably moist.

==EGG PLANT (AUBERGINE)==

==Solatium Melongena, S. esculentum==

In this country the Egg Plant is generally grown merely as an ornament, but it is a delicious vegetable when sliced and fried in oil, the purple-and black-fruited kinds being especially serviceable for the table. The common white, which is best known, is fairly good when cooked young, though less rich in flavour than the purple. The cultivation recommended for Capsic.u.m will suit the Egg Plant, but little atmospheric moisture is needed or the seedlings may damp off. They are not well adapted for planting out, although in a warm season they will fruit freely under a sunny wall, and will grow in a gravel walk if helped at first with a little good soil round the roots. If required in quant.i.ty for the table, the purple variety may be grown in a frame from plants raised on a hot-bed. Generally speaking, a few plants in pots are all that are required where the fruit is not valued as an esculent.

==ENDIVE==

==Cichorium Endivia==

As a result of the growing taste for wholesome salads Endive has considerably advanced in public esteem. The flavour of well-blanched Endive suits most palates that have had experience of salads, and of the salutary properties of the plant we have a hint in its close relation to the Chicory.

The selection of sorts is a question of importance, because the handsome curled varieties that make the best appearance on the table, and might be regarded as ornaments if they were not edible, are the very finest for salads, being tender, with a fresh nutty flavour. The broad-leaved sorts are not so well adapted for salads as for stews, and they take the place of Lettuces when the latter are not available for soups and ragots. However, when an emergency occurs, the curled varieties will be found suitable for cooking, and the broad-leaved for salading, and therefore there need be no waste where one sort predominates.

==Soil==.--A difficulty common to Endive culture may be got over in the way advised for Celeriac. The plant requires a light, dry, sandy soil; and a portion, at least, of the crop is expected to stand through the winter. Thus on a heavy soil there is a prospect of failure in respect of the late crop, but that is obviated by adopting a made bed--one of smallish dimensions being sufficient to accommodate a large stock of plants. Select an open spot, make a foundation of any hard rubbish that is at hand, and on this put one to two feet of sandy soil. This will form a raised bed of a kind exactly suited to the plant, and will cost but little as compared with its ultimate value. If regularly dressed with manure, and otherwise well managed, the bed will supply Endive in winter and other salads in summer, or it may be cropped with Dwarf Beans, which can be removed in August to make way for the usual planting of Endive. Where the soil is naturally light and dry no such preparation is needed, but Endive does not come to perfection without food, and therefore the soil should be rich and deeply dug.

==Sowing and Transplanting==.--The seed may be sown as early as March, in a moderate heat, but the latter part of April is early enough for most purposes, and the main sowings are made in June. Later sowings may follow in July and August. But the June sowing is the most important, as by a little careful management it will supply a few early heads and many late ones. Sow in shallow drills six inches apart, and when the plants are an inch high draw the most forward, and p.r.i.c.k them out on a bed of rich light soil in the same way as Celery, and with a little nursing these will make a first plantation. The plants in the seed-bed should be thinned to three inches, and must have water in dry weather. All the thinnings should be p.r.i.c.ked out in the first instance to make them strong for planting, but the last lot may go direct to the beds to finish.

The final planting must be on rich, light, dry soil, and water given to encourage growth. The distance for the curled varieties is a foot each way, and for the broad-leaved fifteen inches. In taking the last lot from the seed-bed, a crop should be left untouched to mature at twelve to fifteen inches apart. These plants will give a first and most excellent supply if carefully blanched.

If more convenient, seed may be sown where the crop is intended to stand, the plants being thinned to the distances already given.

==The blanching== is an important business, and is variously performed.

The customary mode is to tie the leaves together in the manner usual with Lettuce and mould them up. This method answers perfectly, except in wet seasons, when, if the plants stand for some time, the outer leaves begin to rot, and the decay proceeds inwards, to the deterioration or destruction of the plant. A clean and effective process is to cover the heart of the plant with a flower-pot. The hole is darkened with part of a tile or slate, on which should be laid a piece of turf or a handful of mould. A plate or clean tile placed over the centre of the plant will also blanch Endives satisfactorily in autumn. For winter supplies, the plants may be lifted as wanted and placed in boxes or pots of soil, these being covered with other boxes or pots to exclude light. A Mushroom-house, cellar, or under a greenhouse stage, will serve for storing the lifted plants. The blanching must be carried on in such a way as to insure a succession without a glut at any time, for when sufficiently blanched Endive should be used, or decay will soon set in.

==GARLIC==

==Allium sativura==

The mode of culture advised for Shallots will suit Garlic also, except that the latter should be planted in February about two inches beneath the surface of the soil, and the bulbs may be grown closer together, about eight or nine inches apart each way.

When large bulbs are required for exhibition or other purposes, the cloves--as the divisions of each root are called--should be planted separately; but for general use moderate-sized bulbs, planted whole, will produce a heavier crop.

==GOURD and PUMPKIN==

(==Cucurbita==)

Gourds and Pumpkins may be grown to perfection by precisely the same method recommended for Ridge Cuc.u.mbers; but as the plants occupy more s.p.a.ce, room must be left for them to extend south wards beyond the limits of the ridge. It is well to put out strong plants from seeds sown in pots in April or May, and protect them until established. If these are not obtainable, the seed may be sown where the plants are intended to stand, and there will in time be plenty of produce, but of course somewhat later in the season than if strong plants had been put out in the first instance. Keep a sharp look-out for slugs, which will flock in from all quarters to feast upon them, but will scarcely touch them after they have been planted a week or so. Any rough fermenting material, such as gra.s.s mowings, may be used in making the hills, to give them the aid of a warm bed for a brief s.p.a.ce of time, and it is a great gain if they grow freely from the first. Later on the natural heat will be enough for them.

The edible Gourds are useful in all their stages and ages; and if the cultivator has a fancy to grow large, handsome fruits, he can make the business answer by hanging them up for use in winter, when they may be employed in soups in place of Carrots, or in addition to the usual vegetables, and may indeed be cooked in half a dozen different ways.

There remains yet one more purpose to which the plants may be applied: supposing you have a great plantation of edible Gourds and Marrows, and would like a peculiarly elegant and delicious dish of Spinach, pinch off a sufficiency of the tops of the advancing shoots, and cook them Spinach fas.h.i.+on. If properly done, it is one of the finest vegetables ever eaten. As pinching off the tender tops of the shoots lessens the fruitfulness of the vines, we only recommend this procedure where there is a large plantation.

Gourds may be trained to trellises, fences, and walls. In all such cases, a good bed should be prepared of any light, rich loam, and it will be none the less effective if made on a mound of fermenting material.

==HERBS==

With certain exceptions, the growing of Sweet Herbs from seeds is altogether advantageous. The plants come perfectly true, and are so vigorous that it is easier to raise them from seed than to secure a succession from slips or cuttings. To meet a large and continuous demand in the kitchen there must be a proportionate plantation in the border; but in gardens of medium size we do not advocate the culture of Herbs on an extensive scale, unless there be a special object in view. A moderate number of Herbs will meet the necessities of most families.