ETC. 



The smaller varieties of cabbage will thrive well on 

 either light or strong soil, but the largest drumheads do 

 best on strong soil. For the Brassica family, including 

 cabbages, cauliflowers, turnips, etc., there is no soil so 

 suitable as freshly turned sod, provided the surface is 

 well fined by the harrow, and it is well to have as stout 

 a crop of clover or grass, growing on this sod when 

 turned under as possible ; and I incline to the belief that 

 it would be a judicious investment to start a thick 

 growth of these by the application of guano to the sur- 

 face sufficiently long before turning the sod to allow 

 for its effects on the growth of the clover or grass. If 

 the soil be very sandy in character, I would advise that 

 the variety planted be the Winnigstadt, which in my 

 experience is unexcelled for making a hard head under 

 almost any conditions, however unpropitious. Should 

 the soil be naturally very wet it should be underdrained, 

 or stump foot will be very likely to appear, which is 

 death to all success. 



PREPARING THE SOIL. 



Should the soil be a heavy clay, a deep Fall ploughing 

 is best, that the frosts of Winter may disintegrate it ; 

 and should the plan be to raise an early crop, this end 

 will be promoted by Fall ploughing, on any soil, as the 

 land will thereby be made dryer in early Spring. In 

 New England the soil for cabbages should be ploughed 

 as deep as the subsoil, and the larger drumheads should 

 be planted only on the deepest soil. If the season 

 should prove a favorable one, a good crop of cabbage 

 may be grown on sod broken up immediately after a 

 crop of hay has been taken from it, provided plenty of 

 fine manure is harrowed in. One great risk here is 



