convenience of boxes, four bricks laid edgeways, so as to form a square, and covered 

 with a sheet of glass is a good substitute. As soon as you have sown your seeds, 

 iilace the sashes on the boxes, and let them roniaiii on till the seed is fairly up, then 

 coiniuence giving air on all favorable opportunities, not forgetting to pull the sashes 

 off in warm showers, and increasing as the plants progress in strength; thin thciii 

 out to four plants in each hill so soon as they have made two rough leaves; keep 

 them free from weeds, and draw the soil about the stems so as to strengthen them 

 against the winds. "When they have made four or six rough leaves stop the end of 

 each shoot to make them branch out. As soon as the weather becomes settled re- 

 move the sashes but let the boxes remain, as they prevent in a great measure the 

 plants from being attacked by a black and yellow striped bug, and can easily be 

 taken away when they become filled with vines. The best remedy we have found 

 for the destruction of this pest, is a slight sprinkle from the rose of a watering pot 

 of whale oil soap, diluted in water. Half a pound of soap to six gallons of water 

 every other day, from the time the plants make their appearance until they begin to 

 grow freely. As every foot of ground is valuable in small gardens, it is advisable to 

 sow a row of early Bush Beans, Turnip-Rooted Beets, etc., between the hills, and 

 they will be off the ground before the Melons occupy the whole; attending to hoeing 

 and keeping clear of weeds is all the further assistance they require. 



THE CULTIVATION OF THE LETTUCE. 



BY WILLIAM CHORLTON. 



The Lettuce being so common a vegetable, your readers may think any thing su- 

 perfluous that may be said respecting such an every day article, but as we are con- 

 stantly filling the periodicals with all other departments of gardening affairs to the 

 almost exclusion of kitchen requisites, you will perhaps excuse a little "jog trot" 

 in this way once in a while ; and as a cooling, tender, crisp lettuce is so grateful 

 an accompaniment on the table amongst other things, let us see what can be said re- 

 specting its culture and the immediate connections. 



The indigenous country of this edible now in its modern form is not positively 

 known, and its earliest history is wrapped in obscurity. Like many other things of 

 a similar character, we enjoy the luxury without being cognizant of the origin, but 

 thanks to our now more enlightening policy, we can proclaim to the world our pro- 

 gress, and instead of being trammeled by the mystery and exclusiveness of the dark 

 ages, our onward action or new discoveries can be handed down to posterity. It is 

 generally acknowledged that Egypt, the Island of Cos, and the Levant have furn- 

 ished many of the varieties. All the cultivated kinds are considered to have ema- 

 nated from Lactuca sativa, but the probability is that several species of that genus 

 have each furnished their quota to make up the general aggregate, and, that the 

 particular species named is only a conglomerated distinction. This is more 



