348 



GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. 



in a warm cellar or any such dark and warm place. The 

 roots, if the cellar is dark, may be put in a box with 

 earth around them, or, if in a light cellar, they may be 

 put in the bottom of a barrel with earth, and the top 

 covered. The only care needed is to see that the roots 

 do not get too dry, though water is rarely necessary when 

 the plants are placed in a dark cellar. The useful por- 

 tions are the long and thick leaf-stalks, and these, when 



Fig. 132.— ST. martin's RHmBARB. 



forced, are much finer in flavor than when grown exposed 

 to air and light in the open garden. The plants in the 

 open ground should have the flower stalks cut away as 

 they appear. In gathering do not cut the leaf stalks, as 

 they will readily come away by a sidewise pull, and leave 

 no remnant to decay. The varieties are Myatt's, Linnaeus, 

 Victoria, and the new variety known as St. Martin's 

 (figure 132), which has a distinct gooseberry flavor. 



