22O 



Commercial Gardening 



plants (7 by 7) go to each light, and so far as the first early crops, or 

 primeurs, are concerned, the main point is to watch the ventilation. The 

 Crepe, or Petite noire, Lettuces require but very little air, and this is a great 

 advantage before Christmas, when severe frosts often prevail, and it would 

 be a risky proceeding to open the lights too much. The first crops are 

 mature by the end of November and during December, and they may 

 be seen neatly packed in shallow crates in the London markets before 

 Christmas not always the finest examples, it is true, because those usually 

 go to Paris, Berlin, Amsterdam, and other big Continental cities, where 

 salads are more highly appreciated than they are in England during the 

 cold weather. 



The Cos (or Romaine) Lettuces are raised in the same way as the 



Fig 530. Diagram illustrating Hotbed and Cloches with Nine Rows of Lettuces 



Q) The thick circles show first position, each cloche covering one cos lettuce in the centre, and three 

 cabbage lettuces. (2) The thin circles show second position of cloches, the arrows indicating how they 

 are moved. (3) The dotted circles show third position of cloches moved as indicated by arrows. 



Cabbage ones, but are matured under cloches instead of in frames, owing 

 to their height. Under each cloche, however, a sowing of Radishes and 

 Carrots has already been made, as in the frames; then the Cos Lettuce 

 is placed in the centre, and three or four Cabbage Lettuces are placed 

 around it, making four or five Lettuces (as shown in the diagram, fig. 530) 

 and several Radishes and Carrots altogether under one miniature green- 

 house having a surface area of 1J sq. ft. Each cloche will therefore yield, 

 three or four Cabbage Lettuces, one Cos Lettuce, about five bunches of 

 early Radishes, and three or four bunches of early Carrots, altogether 

 worth from 2s. to 2s. Qd. And this system of cropping is repeated 

 about three times between October and the end of April and May. If 

 prices are good one can realize that the business is a lucrative one, not- 

 withstanding the expense of manure. 



About February, when the weather is getting warmer, the spaces 

 between the cloches are utilized for other Cos Lettuces. As shown in the 

 diagram, six rows are planted, each row of cloches being flanked with two 



