ftantly kept clear from weeds. 



J 



flower •, and their feeds will ripen tlie beginning of 

 Auguft, which, if pexTnitted to fall, the plants will 

 come up, and maintain themfelves without any far- 

 ther care but to keep them clear from weeds. They 

 are annual plants, and periih when they have per- 



fedlcd their feeds. 



The bed method to fave the feeds of all the befl 

 f jrts of Cabbages is, about the end of November 

 you Ihould make choice of fome of your befV Cab- 

 bages, which you fliould pull up, and carry to fome 

 ihed, or other covered place, where you fhouldhang 

 them up for three or four days by their ftalks, that 

 the water may drain from between their leaves ; then 

 plant them in fome border, under a hedge or pale, 

 quite down to the middle of the Cabbage, leaving 

 only the upper part of the Cabbage above ground, 

 obferving to raife the earth about it, fo that it may 

 ftand a little above the level of the ground ; efpecially 

 if the ground is wet, they will require to be raifed 

 pretty much above the furface. 

 If the winter fliould prove very hard, you muft lay a 

 little ftraw or Peafe-haulm lightly upon them, to fe- 

 cure them from the froft, taking it off as often as the 

 weather proves mild, left by keeping them too clofe 

 they fliould rot. In the fpring of the year thefe Cab- 

 bages will flioot out iVrongly, and divide into a great 

 number of fmall branches : you mufl: therefore fup- 

 port their ftems, to prevent their being broken ofl^ by 

 the wind •, and if the weather fliould be very hot and 

 dry when they are in flower, you fliould refrefli them 

 with' water once a v/eek all over the brandies, which 

 will greatly promote their feeding, and preferve them 

 from mildew. 



When the pods begin to change brown, you will do 

 well to cut off the extreme part of every fnoot with 

 the pods, which will ilrengthcn your feeds ; for it is 

 generally obferved, that thofe feeds which grow near 

 the top of the flioots, are very fubjed to run to feed 

 before they cabbage •, fo that by this there will be no 

 lofs, but a great advantage, efpecially if you have 

 more regard to t!ie quality than to the quantity of the 

 feeds, which indeed is not always the cafe, when it is 

 intended for fale i but thofe who fave it for their own 

 vXit, fliould be very careful to have it good. 

 When your feeds begin to ripen, you mufl: be parti- 

 cularly careful, that the birds do not defl:roy it ^ for 

 they are very fond of thefe feeds. In order to prevent 

 their mifchicf, fome ufe old nets, which they throw 

 over their feeds, to prevent their getting to it : but 

 this v.iil not always do, for, unlefs the nets are very 

 fl:rong, they will force their way thro' them, as I have 

 often fcen ; but the belt method I know, is to get a 

 quantity of birdliiric, and dawb over a parcel of flen- 

 der twio:s, v/hich fliould be fallened at each end to 





R 



The fifth fort came from Chind, where it is culti- 

 vated as an efculent plant j of this there are two or 

 tlirce varieties which I have cultivated fome years, 

 but I find them as variable as our common Cabbage. 

 Thefe are annual plants, which, if fown in April, 

 will flower in July, and perfeft their feeds in 06to- 

 ber. They never clofe their leaves to form a head, 

 like the common Cabbage, but grow open and loofe, 

 more like the wild Navew, and are very unfit for the 

 table. As thefe are generally in their perfection for 

 ufe the beginning of July, I imagined their fl:rong 

 flavour and toughnefs might be occafioned by the 

 warmth of the leafon •, therefore I fowed fome of the 

 feeds in July, that I might make trial of them in 

 winter ; but in the midft of froft, I found them much 

 worfe than our common Colewort, fo I thought them 

 not worth propagating. 



The other two forts of Cabbage are varieties fit for 

 a botanic garden, but are plants of no ufe. Thefe 

 may be propagated by fowing their feeds on abed of 

 light earth, early in the fpring, in the place where 

 rhey are defigned to remain (for they do not bear 

 tranfplandng well.) When the plants are come up 

 pretty ftrong, they fliould be thinned, fo as to leave 

 them four or five inches apart ; and they muft becon- 



i \ 



white of red Cabbages 



ftrohger fticks, and placfed near the upper part of 



the feed, in diff^erent places, fo that the birds may 

 alight upon them, by which means they will be faf- 

 tened thereto, where you muft let them remain a con- 

 fiderable time, if they cannot get ofi' themfelves : and 

 although there fliould be but few birds caught, yet it 

 will fufficiently terrify the reft, that they will not 

 come to that place again for a confiderable time after 

 (as I have experienced.)^ 



When your feed is fully ripe, you muft cut it ofi^; 

 and, after drying, thrcfli it out, arid preferve it in 

 bags for ufe. . 



But in planting Cabbages for feed, I would advife 



* never to plant more than one fort in a place, or near 



one another : as for example, never plant red and 



white Cabbages near each other, nor Savoy with either 



, for I am very certain they 

 will, by the commixture of the effluvia, produce a 

 mixture of kinds ; and it is wholly owing to this ne- 

 gledt, that the gardeners rarely fave any good red 

 Cabbage-feed in England, but are obliged to procure 

 frefli feeds from abroad, as fuppoflng the foil or cli- 

 mate of England alters them from red to v;hite, and 

 of a mixed kind between both j whereas, if they 

 would plant red Cabbages by themfelves for feeds, 

 and notfuffx^r any other to be near them, they might 

 continue the kind as good in England, as in any other 

 part of the world ; for in the Dutch gardens, from 

 whence the beft feeds of red Cabbages are procured, 

 they cultivate no other fort. 



Cauliflowers have of late years been fo far improved 

 in England, as to exceed in goodnefs and magnitude 



what are produced in moft parts of Europe ; and by 

 the flcill of the gardener, are continued for feveral 



months together •, but the moft common feafon for 

 the great crop, is in May, June, and July. I fliall 



therefore begin with dire£tions for obtaining them in 

 this feafon. 



Having procured a parcel of good feed, of an early 

 kind, you muft fow it about tlie twenty-firft of Au- 

 guft, upon an old Cucumber or Melon-bed, fifting 

 a little earth over the feeds, about a quarter of an 

 inch thick *, and if the weather fliould prove extreme 

 hot and dry, you fliould fliade the bed with mats, to 

 prevent the earth from drying too faft, which would 

 endanger the fpoiling your feed -, and give it gentle 

 waterings, as you may fee occafion. In about a week's 

 time your plants will appear above ground, v^hen 

 you muft take off" your coverings by degrees,, but do 

 not expofe them too much to the open fun at firft. In 

 about a month's time after fowing, your plants will 

 be fit to prick out, you fliould therefore put fome frefh 

 earth upon your old Cucumber or Melon-beds ; or 

 v/here thefe are not to be had, fome beds fliould be 

 made with a little new dung, which fliould be trodden 

 down clofe, to present the worms from getdng thro' 

 it-, but it fliould not be hot dung, which would be 

 hurtful to the plants at this feafon, efpecially if it 

 proves hot -, into this bed you fliould prick your young 

 plants, at about two inches fquare, obferving to fliade 

 and water them at firft planting ^ but do not water 

 them too much after they are growing, nor fuffer 

 them to receive too much rain, if the feafon fliould 

 prove wxt, which would be apt to make them black 

 flianked (as the gardeners term it, which is no lefs 

 than a rottennefs in their ftems,) and is the deftrutftion 

 of the plants foaffefted. 



In this bed t!iey fliould continue till about the thir- 

 tieth of 06lober, when they muft be removed into 

 ' the place where they are to remain during the winter 

 feafon, v/hich, for the firft fowing, is commonly un- 

 der bell or hand-glafll's, to have early CauUflowers, 

 and thefe fliould be of an early kind : but in order to 

 have a fucceflion during the feafon, j^ou fliould be 

 provided with another more late kind, which fliould 

 be fown four or five days after the other, and ma- 

 naged as v/as direfted for them. 

 In order to !iave very early Cauliflowers, you fliould 

 make choice of a good rich fpot of ground, that is 

 well defended from the north, eaft, and weft winds, 



with 



