PATIENCE. 291 



PATIENCE. 



Herb Patience. Patience Dock. Garden Patience. Rumex 

 patientia. 



This plant is a native of the south of Europe. It is a 

 hardy perennial, and when fully developed, from four to five 

 feet in height. The leaves are large, long, broad, pointed ; 

 the leaf-stems are red ; the flowers are numerous, small, 

 axillary, and of a whitish-green color ; they are put forth 

 in June and July, and the seeds ripen in August. The 

 latter are triangular, of a pale brownish color, and will keep 

 three years. 



Soil and Cultivation. No peculiarity of soil or culture 

 is requisite for the production of this vegetable. The seeds 

 are sown in April or May, or immediately after ripening, in 

 drills fifteen inches apart and an inch deep, and the young 

 plants afterwards thinned to ten or twelve inches apart in the 

 rows. It is also sometimes grown in hills, setting two or 

 three plants together, and making the hills two feet and 

 a half apart. Though it may be propagated by dividing the 

 roots, it is generally raised from seeds. 



The leaves are more abundant, attain a much larger size, 

 and are more succulent and tender, if the flowering shoots 

 are cut or pinched off as they make their appearance. 



The plant is perfectly hardy, and, if cut over regularly, will 

 continue healthy and productive for several years. In the 

 vicinity of gardens where it has been cultivated, it is fre- 

 quently found growing spontaneously, and sometimes be- 

 comes troublesome. 



Use. The leaves are used as Spinach. Though at one 

 period it was cultivated and used to some extent, it is now 

 rarely to be found in the gardens of this country. 



Its present neglect, however, may arise from a want of 

 knowledge of the proper method of using it. The leaves 



