68 THE CULTURE OF VEGETABLES 



plants form part of the every-day stock of the itinerant greengrocer, 

 and appear subsequently in the salad bowl with Water Cress and 

 Corn Salad, delicately dressed, with delicious flavourings. In any 

 case a crowded Lettuce crop is an encumbrance to the ground ; and 

 one of the evils of the best system, that of sowing where the crop 

 is to finish, is the tendency of the cultivator to be timid in the 

 thinning, which should be done with a bold hand, and in good time. 



WINTER LETTUCES are produced and provided for in various 

 ways. In some places Lettuces stand out the winter without cover- 

 ing, and turn in early in the spring. But in other districts Lettuces 

 seldom survive the winter without protection. The summer sowings 

 will afford supplies to a late season of the year, and the crop that 

 remains when frost sets in may be preserved with slight and rough 

 protection. But for profitable production of Winter Lettuces we 

 must have the aid of frames, and care must be taken not to promote 

 a strong growth, for after a term of mild winter weather a sudden 

 and severe frost will probably annihilate those that are in a too 

 thriving condition. In the least likely places, however, it is well to 

 have a small plantation of Winter Lettuces in the open, and to give 

 some rough protection in bad times, as these often prove of great 

 advantage, and even outlive frame crops which have been allowed 

 to get too forward by the aid of warmth and a rich soil. The 

 Hammersmith Cabbage Lettuce, which has no flavour, and the Bath 

 Cos, which is of excellent quality, rank high for their usefulness as 

 hardy Lettuces ; but All the Year Round will brave a certain amount 

 of winter weather without harm, if on a dry bottom, and assisted 

 with occasional protection. The best of all the Winter Lettuces, 

 however, is the popular Black-seeded Bath Cos, which is used in 

 almost every good garden, and is rarely injured by frost. 



The June sowings may be considered the last of the summer crop. 

 In August we begin for the winter crop, and sow small lots succes- 

 sively until the middle of October, after which it is waste of time and 

 seed to sow any more. The August and September sowings may be 

 made partly on an open border and partly in frames, but the October 

 sowings must be in frames only, for winter may overtake them in the 

 seed-leaf. The seedlings must in all cases be thinned and pricked 

 out as soon as large enough, and should be planted in fine soil, free 

 from recent manure, being carefully handled to avoid needless check. 

 Some should be planted in frames on beds of light soil near the 

 glass at three inches apart, and when these meet they must be 

 thinned for the house as may be necessary ; the remainder of the 



