52 



THE VILLA KITCHEN-GAEDEN.— No. YIII. 



ET J. C. CLARKE, 

 Head Gardener at Cothelston House, near Taunton. 



ELERT. — The best varieties of celery for gardens of 

 limited dimensions are Turner's Incomparable Dwarf 

 White and Ivery's ]So7isuch Bed. To these may be 

 added Cole's Crystal White and Cole's Superl Dwarf 

 Bed. Those who require celery in September fit for 

 the table onght to sow in heat the first week in February, and 

 ao"ain at the end of March, and, for still later crops, out of doors 

 in the middle of April. Those sown in heat under glass must be 

 sown thinly, and they must have abundance of light and air to give 

 them strength. About once a week, when the leaves are quite dry, 

 dust them over with a sprinkling of silver sand or dry peat soil, 

 sufficient to give them a slight earthing. They will require careful 

 attention in watering, but must not be watered with a rose on the 

 water-can, as, when the leaves are wetted, they seldom get dry again, 

 and then many of the young plants damp off. Those for the first 

 crop should be pricked off into pans or boxes, and kept under glass 

 until the end of April ; the later sowings may be pricked off in the 

 open air. The best position for them is on a firm, hard bottom, 

 upon which should be placed three or four inches of half-decayed 

 leaves, upon this another three inches of rich nice soil in which to 

 plant out the seedlings. Prick out the plants six inches apart each 

 way, and shade and water on a moderate scale until they are able 

 to withstand the heat of the sun without flagging, but continue the 

 watering as occasion may require, for the secret of growing good 

 celery is to keep it always growing ; for if it receive any serioun 

 check in the earliest stages of its growth, it is liable to run to seed 

 instead of hearting. ^Yhen the plants are wanted for the trenches, 

 cut them out with a sharp spade the whole thickness of the soil into 

 squares three inches over. These may be carried to any part of the 

 garden without injury. 



The work of preparing the trenches is so simple that I only 

 need add they should be five feet apart from centre to centre, and 

 each trench should have at least three inches of good rotten dung 

 dug in at the bottom. 



In stiff or unkind soil it is best to plant on the surface, but the 

 ground must be first well manured. For the early crop the plants 

 ought to be out in the trenches the first week in June, and, for the 

 main crop, the middle of July is not too earty. For the latest crop, 

 which is best planted on the surface, the beginning of September is 

 the latest time allowable in ordinary seasons. 



"We come now to the work of watering and earthing. An abuU' 

 dance of water during dry hot weather is of great importance 

 where fine large heads are required, and sewage or manure water at 

 every alternate watering should be given if possible, as the plant is 

 naturally a gross feeder. I prefer to tie up each plant separately 



