SALADS AND HERBS 123 



the plants run quickly to seed, and the flavour becomes hot and 

 unpleasant. Successional sowings every week or two can be 

 made, the seed germinating in twenty-four hours in moderate 

 heat ; indeed, the seed may be sprinkled upon a piece of wet 

 material, placed in a cooling oven overnight, and will be found 

 to have germinated in the morning ! Cress and Mustard Salads, 

 therefore, may be had at the will of the sower, and with a 

 minimum of trouble. The common Cress is too well known 

 to need description, but the Australian or Golden-leaved variety 

 is not so popular, although it deserves to be, with its larger 

 leaves and striking colour. 



MEADOW CRESS (Cardamine pratensis) ("Lady's Smock"), 

 a British wildling of damp meadows ; AMERICAN, or BELLE 

 ISLE CRESS (Barbarea pr&cox) ; WINTER CRESS (Barbarea 

 vulgaris} ; PARA CRESS (Spilanthes oleracea) ; and BRAZIL CRESS 

 are excellent salad plants resembling the English WATERCRESS, 

 but growing on moist land instead of in water. Seeds of all of 

 them are sown in spring, and the simplest culture is demanded. 

 The America and Winter two similar plants are the most 

 useful of this group, and can be sown successionally all through 

 the year except the most severe winter months. The others 

 may be regarded in a medicinal light rather than that of diet. 



WATERCRESS. This popular salad may be grown anywhere 

 under sufficiently moist conditions ; in fact, if its additional 

 pungency is not objected to, the plants are easily and profitably 

 cultivated in any part of the garden, upon level soil, providing 

 they do not suffer from lack of water, which is the simple rule 

 attendant upon every other plant. But, of course, to grow 

 tender Watercress of mild flavour and good quality, water is a 

 necessity and water in motion an ideal. Watercress is also 

 capable of development witness the fact that rivers and 

 streams in these isles quickly become overrun, whilst those of 

 more favourable climates become completely choked by huge 

 bushes of Watercress rising to a considerable height ! Good 

 culture therefore pays. The methods of growing Watercress 

 are numerous but all depending upon supplies of liquid 

 natural* or artificial. The existence of natural water accommoda- 

 tion is fortunate and ensures success. The possessor of a ntn- 

 ning stream may secure abundant supplies of this fine salad by 

 planting roots in or upon the lower banks of the stream, so as 

 to be washed or covered by the water. A sunken bed may 

 be made, into and over which water from a neighbouring 

 stream, pond, or pipe-stand may be continuously or frequently 



