KOHL RABT. 



101 



KOHL-RABI. 



Plants belonging to the mustard family have gone 

 through many queer contortions to supply the people 

 of Europe with vegetables. Cabbage stores the nourish- 

 ment in abundant leaves ; turnips store the food ma- 

 terial in the roots ; kohl-rabi splits the difference and 

 stores the nourishment in the stem, at the base of the 

 leaves and above the root. In the matter of taste, 

 there is displayed the same adaptation, for, while it 

 partakes of the flavor of cabbage and of turnips, it is 

 distinct from both (see Fig. 14). It is prepared for 

 eating in the same way as turnips. 



Sow the seed in a cold frame in September and re- 

 peat the sowing every four weeks until the first of 

 February. As soon as the seedlings 

 are an inch high, and before the 

 leaves begin to appear, prick them 

 out, and plant in rows four inches 

 apart ; set the plants an inch in the 

 row. As soon as they begin to 

 crowd in the row, transfer again ; 

 when the plants are four or five 

 inches high, plant out in the field. 

 The soil should be a rich loam pre- 

 pared deeply. Make the rows two 

 feet apart and set the plants a foot 

 in the row. Cultivate often to a 

 medium depth. As soon as they 

 have attained a diameter of two inches they ma> be 

 used. Some varieties are grown to feed to stock ; 

 these will be found to be coarse for table use when full 

 grown, but are good when half grown. 



This vegetable has not been shipped and will 

 probably not be of value for this purpose. 



