272 General Notices. 



duce a stock of good healthy cuttings. By following the simple and inex- 

 pensive treatment which we have just recommended, we are sure that those 

 who take the little trouble that it entails will not fail to be gratified by a 

 fine display of bloom, which, from its long continuance, will most certainly 

 afford nmch gratification. — ( Gard. Chron., 1852, p. 247.) 



Chicory as a Winter Salad. — The leaves of this plant make a famous 

 salad, and their value for this purpose cannot be too often brought before 

 the public. They have everything in their favor to recommend them as a 

 substitute for Endive, which, at best, is inferior as a bitter, and it is far more 

 troublesome to grow and keep. First of all, however, a demand must be 

 created for such things. They must be asked for by the public. Growers 

 will not speculate in the production of what they cannot sell, and, owing to 

 our late mild Avintcrs, Curled Endive has become so cheap and so good, 

 arising from the superior manner of treating it to Avhat used to be practised, 

 that it is the only favorite as yet. As I intend, however, to treat of Endive 

 in my next article, I will confine my remarks, for the present, to the follow- 

 ing account of Chicory, which is extracted from one of my pamphlets. 



" Wild or uncultivated Chicory is to be seen all over Britain during the 

 .months of July and August. The stems rise 2 or 3 feet in height, and the 

 branches are furnished with long dandelion-like leaves — the blossoms being 

 blue ; planted in rich earth, however, the stems often grow six feet high, 

 and form a large bushy flowering plant, which would form no mean orna- 

 ment to a border or shrubbery. 



" The heaviest root I ever grew was three-quarters of a pound, and its 

 length 15 inches — in fact, it was as large as a fine stick of horse-radish. 

 The seed of Chicory ought to be sown about the first of June, if the soil is 

 light and the situation warm ; but should the soil be strong and retentive, it 

 ought to be sown in the middle of May. I have found by experience, that 

 if too soon sown, it will run to seed. The ground having been well dug, 

 drills should be drawn I foot apart, the seed sown as parsley is, and about 

 the same depth. When the plants are up, thin them out to 1 foot apart in 

 the rows, leaving if possible tlie broadest pointed leaved ones. Nothing 

 more is necessary than to keep them clear of weeds. Should any run to 

 seed, pull them up, when they have done growing ; in November the roots 

 should be dug up and stored like beet-root. In cutting off the leaves care 

 must be taken not to injure the centre, from which comes all the salad. 



" In 1836, I had a quantity of mould put into a cellar, in the shape of a 

 bed, and planted with Chicory roots as soon as they were taken from where 

 they had grown during the summer. I planted 300 roots in the bed, keep- 

 ing them four inches apart, light and air being entirely excluded. They 

 soon began to grow, producing long, fine cream-colored leaves, and when 

 about six inclies long, I sent tliem to table as salad, cutting off the leaves 

 carefully ; for if you cut into the quick, it would stop a second, third, and 

 fourth crop of leaves which a root produces, until its cells are as empty aa 

 a honey-comb, or until entirely exhausted. From the number of plants in 

 my cellar, I could have supplied ten families such as mine ; but it was not 

 until the occurrence of the severe winter of 1838, that I sufficiently appre- 



