376 SALAD PLANTS. 



Small Nas- Much smaller, in all respects, than the com- 

 turtium. 

 DWARF CAPU- mon Dwarf variety of Tropceolum mains ; the 



CINE. TROP,EO- 



LUM MINUS. stem rarely measuring more than two feet in 

 length, or rising above a foot in height. The flowers are 

 yellow ; the lower petals with a blotch of scarlet at their 

 base, and the upper ones delicately striped with the same 

 color. 



It yields abundantly, and, though the pods are compara- 

 tively small, they are generally preferred to those of the Tall 

 Nasturtium for pickling. 



PICRIDIUM. 



Garden Picridium. Picridium vulgare. 



A hardy, annual plant, from the south of Europe. Stem 

 eighteen inches high ; leaves six to eight inches long, irregu- 

 lar in form, but generally broad at the ends, and heart-shaped 

 and clasping at the base ; flowers yellow, compound, pro- 

 duced in clusters ; the seeds are long, slightly curved, four- 

 sided, brown or blackish-brown, and retain their vitality five 

 years. 



Sowing and Cultivation. The seeds should be sown in 

 April or May, in drills a foot apart, and half an inch in 

 depth. As the plants, when allowed to run to seed, pro- 

 duce but little foliage, it is necessary, in order to secure a 

 continued supply of fresh leaves, to cut or nip off the flower- 

 ing shoot as it makes its appearance. Under proper man- 

 agement, the leaves grow rapidly, and are produced in great 

 abundance. 



Use. The leaves have a pleasant, agreeable flavor, and, 

 while young and tender, are mixed in salads. 



