92 Commercial Gardening 



some 15 in. by 12 in. may be planted to come a little later, many of which, 

 if the right sort has been sown, should make spring Cabbages. 



After this later plantings may be made at 18 in. by 15 in., and 20 in. by 

 16 in. for the main crop of summer Cabbage. 



The best sorts for the August sowing are: Early Offenham, First 

 and Best] Early Market, Meins No. 1] and for late plantings, Enfield 

 Market. 



Spring 1 Sowing". For early autumn cutting in August and September 

 a sowing of Nonpareil in March, to be transplanted in May, is useful 

 After this comes the Colewort season, called in the trade " Collards ". Seed 

 beds may be made in April or May for transplanting in June and July, or 

 sowings in drills for a crop to stand after being singled during June. 

 Judgment must be used for getting these crops out. Summers are often 

 unreliable, and it is a difficult matter, with all that must be done during 

 June and July, to make sure of the moisture, when there happens to be any, 

 before it has dried up. It is no use getting winter Colewort crops out so 

 that they all hearten in September. The grower wishes to arrange, if he 

 can, so that they keep turning in all the winter, finishing up as greens just 

 before spring. The Christmas Drumhead Cabbage, which was introduced 

 a few years ago, is a most useful variant to the Colewort, and the culti- 

 vations for it are the same. [w. G. L.] 



Red Cabbage. Those growers who deem it wise to grow as large 

 a variety of crops as possible will not neglect this pickling vegetable. It 

 has the disadvantage of being liable to "club", like the other members 

 of the Cruciferas, and should not be grown without taking precautions 

 against this pest (see Vol. I, p. 209). Some raise their plants by sowing 

 in the autumn, but inasmuch as few want to start pickling until the season 

 of jam-making is quite over, it will be found that March sowings will be 

 early enough, besides giving less trouble. The plants should be put out 

 2 ft. 6 in. by 18 in. on well-manured land. Red Cabbages, marketed in 

 good condition, make from Is. 3d. to Is. 9d. per dozen. [w. G. L.] 



The Cabbage is an important crop in the Vale of Evesham, and practi- 

 cally an unvarying one. It is also a most striking one in the months of 

 February, March, and April; after which few Cabbage are to be seen in 

 the district. Myatt's " Early Offenham" is almost exclusively grown. To 

 see hundreds of acres of this Cabbage, just before cutting commences at 

 the end of February or early in March, is a striking experience, especially 

 when annually repeated during many years. It says much for the quality 

 of the strain in the first instance and for the care exercised to preserve 

 its purity through two generations. Other varieties have been tried, but 

 they have had to yield to the superiority of "Early Offenham" for com- 

 mercial purposes. The writer has tested all the best -known varieties 

 against it, but none have equalled it for all good qualities. 



Seed is usually sown broadcast in large beds during the first half of 

 July, immediately after rain or immediately after the seed bed has been 

 specially and well soaked with water for the reception of the seed. The 



