196 



Commercial Gardening 



Fig. 510. Orache (A triplex hortensis) 



The tubers of T. tuberosum are a favourite dish in South America, 

 where they are first boiled and afterwards frozen before being eaten. 



They are yellowish mottled with 

 crimson, but are more valuable as 

 flowering plants in Britain than 

 as herbs or salads. (See Vol. II, 

 p. 111.) 



Oraehe or Mountain Spinach 

 (Atriplex hortensis). A hardy 

 annual, (fig. 510), native of Tar- 

 tary, with angular furrowed stems 

 up to 6 ft. and more in height, fur- 

 nished with broad, arrow-shaped, 

 soft, crimpy leaves. These are 

 boiled and eaten like Spinach or 

 Sorrel, and are often mixed with 

 the latter to modify the acidity 

 of its leaves. Seeds are sown in 

 March in drills in good soil, and 

 the plants are thinned out about 

 18 or 24 in. apart each way. 

 There are a few kinds, such as 



the "White Orache", with pale yellowish leaves; the "Dark Red Orache", 

 the stems and leaves of which are of a deep-red colour, which, however, 



disappears in the cooking; and the 

 "Green Orache", the leaves of 

 which are rounder than those of 

 the " White " variety, and are also 

 deep green in colour. 



Purslane (Portulaca oleracea). 

 This Indian annual (fig. 511) has 

 juicy stems and leaves which are 

 eaten cooked, or raw as a salad, 

 and are sometimes pickled. Seeds 

 may be sown in April or May, and 

 monthly till August, in warm sunny 

 spots, in drills about 9 in. apart, 

 for a supply in summer and autumn. 

 Early supplies are obtained by sow- 

 ing on hotbeds from December to 

 March. The varieties known in- 

 clude the " Green ", a vigorous form 



Fig. 511. -Purslane (Portulaca oleracea) of the COHimon type; the "Golden", 



with yellowish leaves; and the 



" Large-leaved Golden ", which has leaves at least twice as large as those 

 of the others. 



