GOOD KING HENRY 



GOOD KING HENRY (Chenopodium bonus Henrlcus) is 

 better known as Mercury, and is probably one of 

 the easiest grown vegetables we have, but not well 

 known or much grown, though in a few counties 

 on the eastern coast it is a great favourite ; indeed, 

 in Lincolnshire there are few gardens of any size but 

 grow a bed of King Henry, and I have heard it called 

 Lincolnshire Asparagus. The plant is perennial, a native 

 of Britain, and is found in many parts of Europe, and is a 

 very wholesome vegetable, and later on when the top 

 growth of the plants has become large the young 

 leaves if gathered make a very good dish and is often 

 used in place of Spinach. The plant well repays good 

 cultivation, though I have seen it growing in the same 

 spot for years, and of course grown thus the leafage is 

 small. The plant grown in good soil produces shoots ; 

 these, cut in a young state and tied up in bunches, some- 

 what resemble Asparagus. If at all old, the skin toughens 

 quickly and it is then necessary to remove the skin before 

 cooking. It is in season from April till June, and should 

 be grown in a warm position, doing best in well drained 

 soil. Seeds may be sown in a bed in spring and the seed- 

 lings planted out in rows 2 feet apart and 1 8 inches 

 between the plants, the quarter having been deeply dug 

 and manured the previous winter. I have also divided 

 plants from old beds or roots, selecting the best roots, 

 and these given new soil soon make headway and give a 

 large quantity of shoots. It should be more grown for 



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