ENDIVE. 105 



which ten or a dozen seeds of cucumber are sown : 

 when up, and on the appearance of their first rough 

 leaf, they are thinned to four or five, in a patch; the 

 hollow basin-like places are filled up, and the re- 

 mainder left to chance and nature ; but generally 

 in this manner a large crop of fruit is produced, 

 especially if the season is genial. Thus with little 

 trouble and no expense, a sum of money may be 

 realised, which would otherwise be lost. The author 

 hopes this hint will be taken advantage of by the 

 cottager. Where a crop of cucumbers is grown in 

 the open air, it is a great advantage to cover the 

 ridges two or three inches thick with clean straw 

 or peas haulm, when the plants are grown suffi- 

 ciently long : this will keep the sun from parching 

 the ground in hot dry weather, and prevent the 

 blossoms and young fruit from being covered with 

 soil during heavy rains. It also prevents the fruit 

 from becoming spotted, when the autumn is wet 

 and cold. 



20. ENDIVE. CICHORIUM. 



This plant receives its botanic appellation from 

 its being a species of succory. The English name 

 endive is derived from its specific denomination 

 Indivia. The garden endive is a hardy annual, a 

 native of China and Japan, and was introduced into 

 England in the reign of Edward the Sixth, in 154-8. 

 It is cultivated in this country more as a winter and 

 spring salad than for any other purpose. The 

 French make a great consumption of it at their 

 tables, eating it raw in salads, boiled in ragouts, 



