1 86 



THE VEGETABLE GARDEN 



of rotting. The Cardoon does not bear frost ; therefore, before 

 severe weather comes on, the, plants should be taken up and placed 

 in a vegetable-house for winter use. 



The Cardoon, if treated in the 

 same manner as Celery, will gene- 

 rally be found to succeed ; the 

 only difference is in the mode 

 of blanching, which requires more 

 care than blanching Celery. Tho- 

 rough blanching is essential, in 

 order to bring out the delicacy of 

 flavour possessed by the Cardoon, 

 without which it is worthless. It is 

 better to have small heads well 

 blanched and crisp than to have 

 large rank ones half-blanched, and 

 consequently tough and strong. In 

 order to have good tender heads, it 

 is necessary to grow the plants from 

 the beginning to the time of blanch- 

 ing without a check, and this can 

 only be done by planting them in 

 deep, rich soil, and keeping them 

 well supplied with water at the 

 roots during dry weather. 



Where Cardoons are in demand 

 early in winter, it is necessary to 

 sow seeds of them in heat early in 

 March, and to transplant in either 

 May or June, according to the 

 weather. For this purpose seed may 

 either be sown in small pots and 

 placed in a warm house, or sown in 

 drills 4 or 5 in. apart, in a gentle 

 hot-bed. Sowing in pots is, how- 

 ever, considered to be the best, in- 

 asmuch as the plants can be more 

 easily removed when required to be 

 hardened off, and they are not so 

 liable to a check when transplanted 

 as when lifted out of a bed. The 

 best-sized pots for the purpose are 

 4-in. ones, in each of which should 

 be sown four or five seeds, thinning 

 out the plants as they advance in 

 growth, and finally leaving only the 

 strongest one. They should be 

 placed close to the glass, where 

 they will get plenty of light and air 



to keep them strong and stubby, 

 gradually hardening them off early 

 in May ; and towards the end of the 

 month they may be transferred to 

 the trenches in which they are to 

 grow, if the weather be favourable, 

 planting them from 2^ to 3 ft. apart 

 in the row. It is not well to sow 

 too early, as the plants become 

 pot-bound before they can be planted 

 out, and consequently checked in 

 growth. A second sowing may be 

 made in May in open trenches, and 

 the main sowing early in June. 

 The trenches should measure at least 

 4 ft. from centre to centre, and be 

 dug 2 ft. wide and 18 in. deep. 

 Into the bottom of these should be 

 placed 2 or 3 in. of good rotten 

 manure, which should be dug in 

 with a fork, and well incorporated 

 with the soil in the bottom of the 

 trench. The seeds should then be 

 sown in patches from 2^ to 3 ft. 

 apart, and slightly covered with fine 

 soil well watered, and flower-pots 

 should be placed over them until the 

 plants are up, when they may be 

 removed and the weakest plants 

 thinned out, eventually allowing 

 only the strongest to remain. The 

 subsequent treatment consists in 

 keeping them well supplied with 

 water at the roots until the end of 

 September, when they will have 

 nearly completed their growth, and 

 when they will require moulding up. 

 Those planted earlier will, however, 

 be ready before that time, and should 

 be earthed up as early as possible 

 the aim in this case generally 

 being earliness rather than large 

 heads. 



TYING AND EARTHING UP. 

 Choose a fine day, when the foliage 

 of the plants and the soil are dry. 



