SEA-KALE. 285 



with flour and butter. If desired, a less rich sauce 

 may be made by leaving out the gravy, and substi- 

 tuting milk for the cream. 



Culture. No culinary vegetable hitherto intro- 

 duced can be raised, either naturally or artificially, 

 with less trouble, or with a greater certainty of suc- 

 cess, than the sea-kale, as in both cases the same 

 plants will last many years ; and in the annual forc- 

 ing they give. the gardener little or no anxiety, as 

 there will be no fear of the bursting of boilers (in 

 the hot-water system), the firing of flues, or an 

 over-heated dung hot-bed ; but in the end an almost 

 certainty of success. 



There are three methods by which sea-kale can 

 be propagated by seed, slips, and pieces of the root; 

 but that from seed is the most preferable method, 

 for which purpose any piece of ground that has 

 been previously manured for other crops will 

 answer. 



The seed may be sown from the middle of 

 March to the end of April, either in drills, or 

 broad-cast in a four-feet bed : the quantity of seed 

 to be proportioned to the size of the garden; if 

 small, about three pints ; but if large, and much 

 forcing is required, full two quarts will not be 

 found too much ; the seed being inclosed in a shell 

 renders it bulky. If the seed is sown in drills, 

 such should be drawn with a broad-pointed hoe, 

 about two inches deep, and either in drills or beds 

 the seed should be thinly sown ; that in the drills, 

 when covered, to be lightly beaten down with the 

 head of the rake ; that sown in a bed, if the ground 

 is light, may be beaten down with the back of the 



