January 27, 187G. ] 



JOURNAL OP HOKTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



G7 



I planted Lee's Earhj Hammersmith. It agaia proved to be 

 a valuable kind, moat probiibly a aeleetel straia of the Ashleaf, 

 bat more robust, and the flavour equally good. 



Rector of Woodstock (Kenu). — Uafortnnately this promising 

 variety with me was very much attacked by the disease — more 

 BO thau any kind I grew this year. I have found it so for two 

 years, and hope on a third trial I may be more fortunate. I 

 am the more surprised at this, as Mr. Fenn, I see, says it has 

 been very free from disease, and yet my soil is not heavy. 



Bnowjlakc. — Without doubt, as far as my judgment goes, 

 the only one of the Yankees worth growing. It again did very 

 well with me, and we all pronounced its flavour to be good, 

 while in colour it well deserves its name. Some have a fear 

 of its degenerating : for two seasons I have found it good. 



The following kinds were grown in a field of sandy soil — • 



Lapstone. — I can in no way alter my opinion of this Potato 

 — that for flavour there is none to equal it. It wants mora 

 robustness, as it is liable to disease. 



Ilimdredfold Fluke. — ^I have found thia, as before, but little 

 affected with disease ; and although not to my own taste quite 

 as to quality, it is much liked by some of as. 



Red-sldn Flourball. — Thi^ again has proved, notwithstanding 

 the season, a very excellent kind for the purpose for which I 

 use it^baking, and it certainly resists the attacks of disease 

 better than most kinds. 



Victoria. — I can say nothing better of this than what is 

 written to me by one of our most eminent seedsmen — " The 

 Victorias you send are splendid ; we have nothing like them 

 about here." 



I also received from the Messrs. Sutton of Reading a sample 

 of their new kidney Potato Mugnnm Bonum. It boiled well 

 and was of good flavour, but I hope to be able to judge of it 

 this year by growing it under my own eye. 



I have this year again followed out my plan, as far as the 

 season would permit me, both of planting and taking up early; 

 and althongh not able to perform either operation quite as soon 

 astisual.I have found the advantage of it ; and although some 

 of the Potatoes did not seem to be quite ripe when taken up, 

 I have lost very few since. Out of five sacks of Victorias I do 

 not think there is a peck of diseased tubers. 



I wish I could write differently than I do of Tomatoes, but 

 I fear I must give up all hopes of growing them. For now 

 three seasons I have tried it, and each year the failure is more 

 complete. They grow well, come into fruit and swell, but they 

 become attacked with a disease very analogous apparently to 

 that of the Potato, and not one comes to perfection. I tried 

 both Conqueror and Excelsior, and the result was the same 

 with both. That it is to be referred to atmospheric causes is 

 quite clear, for I potted a few of the plants from the same 

 seed-pan and placed them in the greenhouse, and these were 

 quite free from any disease. Many persons in this neighbour- 

 hood have complained of the same, and I very much fear the 

 result must be the abandonment of Tomato-growing here. 



Cucumbers I have but small facilities for growing, having 

 but one frame, and so must confine myself to one sort. It is 

 a matter, therefore, of some consequence to me that I have a 

 good one. This year I tried Duke of Connaught, and found 

 it to be a very valuable kind, producing fruit freely, sufficiently 

 long for any purpose, and of good flavour. It is a white- 

 spined variety, and has a remarkably small handle, so that 

 nearly all the fruit is fit to use. 



French Beans. — Canadian Wonder still maintains its cha- 

 racter, and I do not care to grow any other v.ariety but it. It 

 is good at all times, and is a great favourite with greengrocers 

 on account of its fine handsome appearance. It is also of 

 remarkably good flavour, and the amount it produces simply 

 prodigious. 



In other vegetables I have nothing particularly worthy to 

 record. Some of the old standard kinds are still unsurpassed, 

 but occasionally novelties do force themselves to the front, 

 and therefore it is well that their merits should be recorded ; 

 and the experience of many will be most useful, even although 

 like myself their " diggings" are but small. — D. , Deal, 



Witloof or Witteloof is Flemish, and signifies White-leaf, 

 from the plarit being blanched in the same way as Seakale 

 and other vegetables. It is very common in Belgium and 

 especially about Brussels, where it is sometimes called Chicoria 

 de Bruxelles. It is blanched and used in the same way as 

 Seakale, and the smaller side shoots which are produced after 

 the crown is cut form an excellent salad. We have for many 

 years remarked this excellent vegetable at the tables of onr 

 Belgian friends during the winter and spring months, and have 

 been surprised that through the enterprise of our generally 

 enterprising seedsmen it has not sooner been introduced into 

 this country. We have grown it for several years from seed 

 procured in Brussels, and found it to succeed perfectly ; and 

 now that it has been introduced by Messrs. Carter & Co., to 

 whom W9 are indebted for the accompanying illustration, we 



"WITLOOF. 

 A NEW and very excellent vegetable was shown for the first 

 time in this country at the meeting of the Fruit and Vegetable 

 Committee of the Royal Horticultural Society on the 19th iust. 

 It was raised from seed supplied to the Society by Messrs. 

 •James Carter & Co., and was grown in the garden of the 

 Society at Chiswick. 



Fig. 18.— Witloof. 



shall expect to see it become as widely distributed throughout 

 the country and in car markets as forced Seakale or forced 

 Rhubarb are. 



Witloof IS a variety of the common Chicory (Cichorium In- 

 tybus) which has been long cultivated in this country for 

 salads, but is totally different from that variety inasmuch as 

 the latter, to be well adapted for salads, requires to have a 

 small midrib and a thin blade to the leaf, whereas in this 

 " Chicoree a grosse racine amelioree" the groat object is to 

 have a thick and fleshy midrib and blade so as to have it as 

 succulent as possible. 



Our mode of culture has been to sow the seed on good well- 

 mannred soil in drUls 9 inches apart in the open ground in 

 the end of May or beginning of June just as the weather per- 



