194 THE KITCHEN-GARDEN. 



In November cover your beds with a thick coat of rotten dung or 

 leaves, this at the same time that it protects your plants from 

 frost, will bring them forwarder, and add to their luxuriance j about 

 the middle of March in the middle states, it will be necessary to 

 cover your plants for blanching, the readiest mode of doing which, 

 is to draw the earth up with a hoe over the crown of the root, so- 

 that each plant shall be covered to the depth of ten or twelve inches ; 

 some blanch it by heaping on it sea-sand, some common sand and 

 pebbles, and others with large garden pots inverted, and placed im- 

 mediately over the plants, stopping up the holes at the bottoms, 

 and this last is the neatest and cleanest mode. 



The finest or at least the largest Sea Kale, is that which is produced 

 from seedling plants the first year of their flowering, as the great 

 produce of the plant then centres in one flowering stem ; afterwards 

 the crown of the root ramifying into many heads, a greater number 

 of stalks are produced, which are more slender but not less delicate. 

 When your plants have been covered in either method, three, 

 four, or five weeks, according to the early or late period of covering, 

 examine them, and if you find that the stalks have shot up three or 

 four inches, you may begin cutting ; should you wait till all the 

 shoots are of a considerable length, your crop will come in too much 

 at once, for in this plant there is not that succession of growth 

 which there is in Asparagus ; you may continue cutting till you see 

 the head of flowers begin to form, and if at this time you uncover 

 it entirely, and let it prooceed to that state in which Brocoli is usu- 

 ally cut, and use it as such, you will find it an excellent substitute, 

 and this greatly enhances the value of the plant, as Brocoli does not 

 stand our winter fiost, and can only be had when carefully protected 

 as directed in November, but this plant is sufficiently hardy to bear 

 our severest frost, without much injury. You are not to weaken 

 the roots too much by over-cutting, for in that case you would in- 

 jure their next year's bearing; they are to be indulged, as you do 

 asparagus with several uncut shoots, to grow up during summer, 

 to carry on a proper vegetation, to strengthen and enlarge the roots. 



Such as are partial to this plant may force it in any of the winter 

 or early spring months, nothing more being necessary than to place 

 over each plant a large garden pot, as in one of the modes of blanch- 

 ing already recommended, and cover the pots with a sufficient quan- 

 tity of hot horse dung, the heat of the dung brings forward the plant, 

 while the pot keeps it from coming in contact therewith ; and as 

 the growth of the plant is by this means greatly accelerated, it is of 

 course rendered more tender, as well as sweeter. 



These plants may also be forced in frames as directed in January 

 and February for asparagus, observing to take up such plants for 

 this purpose as are sure to flower, trimming their side roots and 

 shortening their long tap-roots to the length of nine or ten inches, 

 or twelve in very large plants, and placing them in a frame on a 

 hot-bed, and in a suitable depth of earth, at the distance of four to 

 six inches asunder ; as the plants used thus, will be rendered of 

 little or no value, where this practice is used, it will be necessary, 

 to have a regular succession of plants for the purpose. 



