134 THE KITCHEN-GARDEN. [CHAP. VL 



of the leaves turned down over the flowers, to 

 preserve them from the rays of the sun, which 

 would turn them brown, and from the rain, 

 which would rot them. At length, about the 

 end of May, or in June and July, the cauli- 

 flowers are ready for the market ; and little do 

 the purchasers of them think of the labour and 

 unremitting attention which, for so many months, 

 have been required to rear them. A second 

 crop, sown in February and planted out in April, 

 will be ready in August ; and a third crop, sown 

 in May and planted out in July, will be in per- 

 fection about Michaelmas or October, and may 

 be preserved in mild weather till near Christ- 

 mas. 



Broccoli is generally supposed to be a variety 

 of the cauliflower; but it differs essentially, 

 both in being much hardier, and in being very 

 apt to vary. Thus, while only two kinds of 

 cauliflower are known, the early and the late, 

 and even these can hardly be distinguished from 

 each other, there are ten or twelve distinct sorts 

 of broccoli, and more are beino- raised every 

 season. All these kinds, however, appear to 

 have sprung from two, the purple and the green, 

 which are said to have been brought from Italy. 

 Broccoli is grown for the table in autumn, win- 

 ter, and early spring ; but there is no summer 

 crop. The principal seasons for sowing are, 

 February and April for the autumn and winter 

 crops, and June for the spring crop; and the 

 plants succeed best in fresh loamy soil, or, if 

 this cannot be procured, in ground that has 

 been deeply trenched and well manured. The 

 culture is like that of cabbages, except that, in 



