VEGETABLES 57 



application of liquid manure is most beneficial, but 

 watering liberally must take place throughout their 

 culture. 



There are two kinds of lettuces, the Cos and 

 the Cabbage. 



The Cabbage lettuce grows flat and spreading, 

 and the Cos compact and upright. 



Cos lettuces are generally blanched by bending 

 down the tips of the leaves over the heart and 

 tying them together with bast. Johnson recom- 

 mends in his ' Gardener's Dictionary ' that at the 

 time of tying them up, the centre bud of each 

 should be cut out with a sharp knife, to prevent the 

 plants running to seed before the heart is perfectly 

 blanched. 



The German or Spotted lettuce is being now 

 much grown in England. It is cultivated in the 

 usual way, and is similar to the Cabbage lettuce, 

 only larger, and with reddish spots over the leaves. 

 It is very succulent and sweet in eating. 



The Italian lettuce Incappacciato can also be 

 well grown here, and is a very crisp lettuce cabbage 

 in form, but with jagged prickly-looking leaves ; 

 they should be quickly grown and eaten quite 

 young. As they grow older they can be dressed 

 as spinach and in various other ways, and make 

 a very nice addition and change to the dinner 

 table. We have grown it with seeds sent from 

 Naples, and found it succeed wonderfully well. 



The best kinds of English lettuces to grow 

 are : Cos Lettuce, Sutton's Mammoth White, Paris 

 White, Winter White, Cabbage Lettuces, Sutton's 

 Gem, Commodore Nutt, Golden Ball and Veitch's 

 Perfect Gem. 



