CARDOOX. 153 



unblanched, and leave them in the ground during the winter, 

 protected by straw or other convenient material. They will 

 grow to the height, and flower and seed, as before de- 

 scribed. One plant will afford sufficient seed for any com- 

 mon garden. 



Use. The plant is cultivated for the stems and mid-ribs 

 of the large leaves, which, after being blanched, are used in 

 various forms of cookery and as winter salad. 



In France, the flowers are gathered, and dried in the 

 shade ; and, when so preserved, are used as a substitute 

 for rennet, to coagulate milk. 



Varieties. 



This kind grows from four to five feet high. Common, or 



Large 

 The leaves are large and strong, though some- Smooth. 



what smaller than those of the Tours or Prickly SMOOTH LARGE 



* SOLID* 



Cardoon. They are of a shining green color, 



with little appearance of hoariness on the upper surface, and 



generally destitute of spines ; though some of the plants 



occasionally have a few small ones at the base of the 



leaflets. 



The Cardon Plein Inerme of the French, which is de- 

 scribed in the "Bon Jardinier" as a novelty, corresponds 

 nearly with the Large Smooth or Common Cardoon. 



Stem five or six feet high. The divisions of Large Span- 

 ish. Trans. 

 the leaflets are rather narrower, and somewhat 



more hoary, than those of the Common Cardoon. The ribs 

 are longer, and the whole plant stronger and generally more 

 spiny ; though on the whole comparatively smooth. It is 

 not, however, always readily distinguished from the Common 

 or Large Smooth Cardoon. It runs up to seed quicker than 

 the other varieties. 



