BROCCOLI. 41 



on them until they be thawed ; this may be done by shaking 

 a little straw on the bed as they lay. 



It may, perhaps, be not generally understood, that the 

 sudden transition from cold to heat, is more destructive to 

 vegetables than the cold itself. If plants of any kind get 

 frozen, and cannot be screened from the sudden rays of the 

 sun, they should be well watered as the air gets warm, and 

 before they begin to thaw ; this will draw out the frost, and 

 may be the means of saving the plants. 



The proper time for sowing seed of the Purple Cape 

 Broccoli, is from the tenth to the twenty-fourth of May :* 

 those who intend-to provide a place for the winter keeping of 

 the other kinds, may sow seeds of the most esteemed varieties 

 at the same time, or in two or three separate sowings, a 

 week apart. 



In order to insure good stout plants, let the seed at this 

 season be sown in a moderately shaded border. It is best 

 sown in shallow drills, drawn three or four inches apart, in 

 which case one ounce of seed will occupy a border of about 

 four feet in width by twelve in length, and produce about 

 four thousand strong plants. 



In the beginning of July, or when the plants are of 

 sufficient size, they should be transplanted into extraordi- 

 nary rich ground, which should be brought previously into 

 good condition. This being done, plant them in rows two 

 feet and a half apart, and two feet distance in the rows. 



* It has been proved by repeated experiments, that the Purple Cape 

 Broccoli succeeds better in our climate than any other variety; and, 

 also, that if Broccoli or Cauliflower plants be retarded in growth by 

 extreme heat, they seldom arrive st good perfection. It is, therefore, 

 important that the'tirae of sowinj the seed of Cape Broccoli be so regu- 

 lated as to allow, say six weeks of the summer, for the plants to grow in, . 

 previous to their bein^ transplanted, and about seven or eight weeks 

 between then and the commencement of cool autumn weather, which 

 i* essential to mature them. 



If seed be sown much before the middle of May, or so early that the 

 plants arrive at full growth in the heat of summer, and thereby become 

 stunted, they generally button, instead of formingj>erfect heads of flower*, 

 and are consequently of no use but for cattle. 



In some of the Southern States, latej planting of Broccoli and 

 Cauliflower, succeeds better than early, because the winters are calcu- 

 lated to mature these vejretables,'from their not being subject to injury 

 by slight frost, in a late eta^e of their growth. 



4* 



