CRESS, OR PEPPERGRASS. 329 



The Italian Corn Salad is a distinct species, Italian Corn 

 and differs from the Common Corn Salad in its VALERIANELLA 



EB10CABPA. 



foliage, and, to some extent, in its general habit. 

 It is a hardy annual, about eighteen inches high. The 

 radical leaves are pale green, large, thick, and fleshy, 

 those of the stalk long, narrow, and pointed ; the flowers 

 are small, pale blue, washed or stained with red ; the seeds 

 are of a light brown color, somewhat compressed, convex on 

 one side, hollowed on the opposite, and retain their vitality 

 five years. Nearly twenty-two thousand are contained in 

 an ounce. 



It is cultivated and used in the same manner as the 

 species before described. It is, however, earlier, milder 

 in flavor, and slower in running to seed. The leaves are 

 sometimes employed early in spring as a substitute for 

 Spinach ; but their downy or hairy character renders them 

 less valuable for salad purposes than those of some of the 

 varieties of the Common Corn Salad. 



CRESS, OR PEPPERGRASS. 



Lepidium sativum. 



The Common Cress of the garden is a hardy annual, and 

 a native of Persia. When in flower, the stem of the plant 

 is smooth and branching, and about fifteen inches high. 

 The leaves are variously divided, and are plain or curled, 

 according to the variety ; the flowers are white, small, and 

 produced in groups, or bunches ; the seeds are small, ob- 

 long, rounded, of a reddish-brown color, and of a peculiar, 

 pungent odor. About fourteen thousand are contained in 

 an ounce, and they retain their germinative properties five 

 years. 



Soil and Cultivation. Cress will flourish in any common 

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