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ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL HORTICULTURE 



in clusters of two or three from the smal- 

 ler branches. The rough rind is irregu- 

 larly marked in squares and other figures 

 with raised centers. The unripe fruit con- 

 tains a milky juice, and when in the 

 edible stage it resembles fresh bread, be- 

 ing white and mealy. It is then slightly 

 tart. Later it becomes yellow, juicy, and 

 tastes of decay. In tropical countries 

 where it has been introduced and particu- 

 larly in its original home, the fruit is 

 highly valued as a nutritious food, being 

 prepared for use in various ways. 



When baked it resembles plantain 

 rather than wheaten bread, being sweet- 

 ish, slightly astringent, but otherwise 

 almost tasteless. When fresh fruits can- 

 not be procured, it is sometimes slightly 

 fermented, beaten to a pasty mass, and so 

 used. 



Another common way of preparing it is 

 to beat it to a paste with cocoanut milk 

 and to serve it mixed with bananas, 

 plantains, etc. Since the trees produce 

 two or three crops annually, and since 

 the bearing seasons of different varieties 

 overlap more or less, the fruit may be ob- 

 tained during the greater part of the 

 year. Not alone for the fruit is the tree 

 valuable; in the South Sea Islands Its 

 fibrous inner bark is woven into cloth 

 resembling, but inferior in softness and 

 whiteness to that made from the paper 

 mulberry which is similarly employed in 

 those islands; the gummy exudation from 

 the bark, boiled with cocoanut oil is used 

 for caulking canoes, pails, etc.; the beau- 

 tiful yellow wood is light and soft, but 

 when exposed to the air becomes dark like 

 mahogany, and is used for canoes, furni- 

 ture, and the interior work in houses. 



The tree has been cultivated to a slight 

 extent in Southern Florida, but the fruits 

 rarely appear even in the most southern 

 markets of the United States, because 

 they do not bear shipment well, and un- 

 less used very soon after being gathered 

 become hard and disagreeable in taste. 

 For an account of the introduction of the 

 bread fruit tree into the West Indies in 

 the last decade of the 18th Century, when 

 such feats were more diflBcult and less 

 common than a century later, see Curtis' 



"Botanical Magazine" (pp. 2869-71). A 

 near relative of the bread fruit trees is 

 the jack. 



The Americana Bread Nut 



Brosiniiim aUcaslnim 



A tree of the natural order Urticaceae, 

 a native of the West Indies and closely 

 related to the bread fruit. The tree, 

 which is very large, bears shining lance- 

 shaped leaves; globose catkins of male 

 and female flowers on different trees; and 

 yields a gummy, milky juice from its 

 bark. The round, yellow fruits (drupes), 

 which are about three inches in circum- 

 ference, contain a single seed. When 

 roasted or boiled the.v are used like 

 bread, and having a flavor which re- 

 sembles hazel nuts, form a pleasant food. 

 In the United States the tree has not been 

 cultivated. 



The Americaka Broccoli, How Groion 

 in Alaska. See Alaska. 



See Kale. 



Brush Land, Preparation of. See Apple 

 Orchard. Preparation of G-round. 



Brussels Sprouts 



This vegetable belongs to the Cabbage 

 family. The stem is usually two or more 

 feet high with leaves, and at the base of 

 each leaf is a small cabbage which is 

 seldom more than two inches in diameter. 

 These miniature cabbages are much more 

 delicate in flavor than the ordinary cab- 

 bages, and are the parts eaten. In grow- 

 ing, it requires the same treatment as 

 the cabbage, except that they may be 

 grown nearer together. It is highly 

 esteemed by some persons, as an article of 

 food, but has not come into general use; 

 probably owing to the fact that in our 

 markets, not as much attention is paid 

 to quality as to general appearance. The 

 Dwarf Brussels is the variety most 

 highly recommended. 



The plant is a biennial, a native of 

 Europe, and like the cabbage succeeds 

 well on almost any deep rich soil. 



Varieties 



Scrymger Giant. 

 Long Island Improved. 

 For Diseases and Pests, see under 

 Cabbage. Granville Lowther 



