D A U 



D A U 



stripes, of a pale yellow on their outside ; a sin- 

 gle tree will perfume the air of a large garden. 

 It is a Dative of South America. 



Culture. — These plants are propagated annu- 

 ally, by sowing the ?eeds in the two first or 

 hardy sorts in the clumps, borders, or other 

 places where the plants are to remain, in 

 patches of four or live together, covering them 

 in to the depth of nearly half an inch. When 

 the plants arc up the weakest should be removed, 

 so as to leave only one or two of the strongest 

 in each place: but in the latter or tender sorts 

 the seed should be sown in the spring season, as 

 the latter end of March or beginning of the fol- 

 lowing month, either on a hot-bed covered by 

 frames and glasses, or in pots, and managed as 

 other tender annuals, admitting air to them 

 freely in their early growth, and when some 

 inches high removing them into separate pots, 

 re-plunging them in the hot-bed so formed as 

 to draw them up to a pretty tall growth. When 

 the weather becomes settled warm, .as about 

 June, they may be removed into the open air, 

 being previously hardened by due exposure, either 

 in the pots, or planted out in the borders or other 

 places, with balls of earth about their roots. 

 The two first kinds are the best suited to the last 

 method. 



The first and second species arc adapted to 

 large borders of pleasure-grounds, where they 

 have a good effect in mixture with others of si- 

 milar growth ; but the first is sometimes trou- 

 blesome as a weed. The other kinds, from the 

 beauty of their flowers, produce a pleasing va- 

 riety in assemblage with other potted annual 

 plants. See Annual Plants. 

 DATE PLUM. See Diospvros. 

 DATE TREE. See Phocnix. 

 DAUCUS, a genus containing a plant of the 

 esculent kind. 



It belongs to the class and order Pentandria 

 Digynia, and rank* in the natural order of Um- 

 letlatce. 



The characters are: that the calyx is an 

 universal umbel, manifold, flowering flat, 

 fruiting concave-converging: partial manifold, 

 similar: involucre universal, many-leaved length 

 of the umbel: leaflets linear, pinnatilid: partial 

 morcshnple,ltngthoftheiimbelluIe: perianthium 

 proper scarce manifest: the corolla universal 

 diffbrm, somewhat rayed; floseules of the disk 

 abortive : proper of five petals, inflex-hearted ; 

 the exterior ones larger : the stamina consist of 

 five capillary filaments i anthers simple: the 

 p'utillum is an inferior germ, small: styles two, 

 reflex: stigmas obtuse; there is no pericarpium : 

 the fruit ovate, often hispid on every side with 

 »tiff hairs, bipaithe; the seeds two, somewhat 



ovate, on one side convex, hispid, on the oilier 

 flat. 



The species cultivated is D. Carota, Com- 

 mon Carrot. 



ft has along, large perpendicular tapering root, 

 from fifteen to eighteeninches in length, with long 

 erect finely divided leaves, having the stem three 

 feet high in its flowering state ; it diners little 

 from the wild carrot, except in the largeness 

 and sueculeney of the plant, and particularly of 

 the root, which with its superior size usually 

 takes a tincture of yellow in different shades to 

 deep orange, and becomes of a softer texture, 

 without any of that acrimony and aromatic fla- 

 vour which is found in the wild root: it has 

 white flowers on all the branches. It is annual, 

 flowering from June to August. 



There are varieties with orange coloured roots, 

 termed Orange Carrot, with a shorter red root, 

 termed Early Horn-carrot, with a purple root, 

 and with a light yellow root. 



Culture. — In the culture of this useful vegeta- 

 ble, a deep light soil should be employed as 

 much as possible, and when of a sandy quality 

 it is still more advantageous. It should have 

 been well manured the preceding year, as when 

 it is applied the same year the roots are apt to be 

 affected with the canker. Where it is made use 

 of the same year, it should be well rotted, as 

 such as has been used in the hot-bed. 



In preparing the ground, it should be well 

 trenched over at no great length of time before 

 the period of sowing, to the full depth of eigh- 

 teen inches, the lumps being well broken and 

 reduced, and the manure when used at the 

 time completely turned in. When this busi- 

 ness is not performed in a perfect manner, the 

 roots are liable to spread in a lateral manner, 

 and become branched. 



The situation should be open, and free from 

 the droppings of trees, or other inconveniences 

 of the same kind. 



The seed for this crop should always be 

 such as has been collected from plants of the 

 preceding year, and which is perfectly fresh and 

 well ripened; as old seed never answers well in 

 this culture, much of it being in a state inca- 

 pable of vegetating. 



The sorUnost proper for the different garden 

 crops, is for the early ones the Horn- Carrot, 

 but for the general crop, the Orange is constantly 

 to be employed, not only as growing more large, 

 but more straight and handsome, and keeping 

 better, as well as being more sweet and pleasant 

 in the taste. 



The other varieties may be grown where variety 

 is wanted. Whatever sort is made use of, it is 

 of much consequence to have genuine seed. 



