BMP 



[ 355 ] 



END 



E. serrula'tum (fine saw-edged). 3. Pink. 

 June. 1774. Cape of Good Hope. 



ENCE'LIA. (From egclielion, a little 

 eel ; formation of the seeds. Nat. ord., 

 Composites [Asteracese]. IQ-Syngenesia 

 3-Frustranea. Allied to Sclerocarpus.) 

 Greenhouse evergreens. Seeds, when obtain- 

 able, in spring; cuttings, a little dried at the 

 base, in sand, under a glass, and shaded; sandy 

 fibry loam, with a little peat. Winter temp., 

 35 to 45. 



E. cane'scens (hoary). l. Orange. July- 

 Peru. 1780. 



Halimifo'lia (Halimus-leaved). l. Yellow. 

 July. Mexico. 1826. 



ENCHANTEK'S NIGHTSHADE. Circce'a. 



ENDIVE. (Cicho'rium endi'via.} Used 

 in salads. 



Varieties. The green-curled is culti- 

 vated for the main crops, as it best 

 endures wet and cold ; the white-curled, 

 chiefly grown for summer and autumn ; 

 the broad-leaved, or Batavian, is pre- 

 ferred for soups and stews, but is sel- 

 dom used for salads. 



Soil and Situation. A light, dry, but 

 rich soil, dug deep and unshaded. It 

 is best to form an artificial bed by lay- 

 ing a foot in depth of earth on abed of 

 brickbats, stones, &c. 



Sowing. For a first crop about the 

 middle of April, to be repeated in May, 

 but only in small portions, as those 

 which are raised before June soon ad- 

 vance to seed. Towards the middle 

 of June the first main crop may be 

 sown again, in the course of July, and 

 lastly early in August ; and in this 

 month the main plantation is made. 

 Sow in drills twelve inches apart, and 

 about a quarter of an inch below the 

 surface. When an inch in height, thin 

 the plants to three or four inches apart : 

 those taken away are two small to be 

 of any service if pricked out. Water 

 should be given freely in dry weather. 



When the larger seedlings have been 

 transplanted, the smaller ones which 

 remain should have a gentle watering, 

 and in twelve or fourteen days they 

 will afford a second successional crop ; 

 and, by a repetition of this manage- 

 ment, in general, a third. The plants 

 are generally fit for transplanting when 

 of a month's growth in the seed-bed, 

 or when five or six inches high. 



Planting. Set them in rows twelve 



or fifteen inches apart each way ; the 

 Batavian requires the greatest space. 

 Water must be given moderately every 

 evening until the plants are established, 

 after which only in excessive and pro- 

 tracted drought. Those which are left 

 in the seed-bed, in general, attain a 

 finer growth than those that have been 

 moved. In November, some plants 

 that have attained nearly their full 

 size may be removed to the south side 

 of a sloping bank of dry light earth, 

 raised one or two feet behind : to be 

 protected by frames, mats, or thick 

 coverings of litter, during severe and 

 very wet weather ; but to be carefully 

 uncovered during mild dry clays. The 

 plants, in this instance, are not re- 

 quired to be further apart than six or 

 eight inches. This plan may be fol- 

 lowed in open days during December 

 and January, by which means a con- 

 stant supply may be obtained. Instead 

 of being planted in the above manner 

 on a terrace, it is sometimes practised 

 to take the plants on a dry day, and 

 the leaves being tied together, to lay 

 them horizontally in the earth down to 

 the tip of the leaves ; this accelerates 

 the blanching, but otherwise is far more 

 subject to failure. As the number ne- 

 cessary for a family is but small, but 

 few should be planted at a time. 



Blanching. About three months 

 elapse between the time of sowing and 

 the fitness of the plants for blanching. 

 This operation will be completed in 

 from ten to fourteen clays in summer, 

 or in three or four weeks in winter. 

 To blanch the plants tie their leaves 

 together; or place tiles or pieces of 

 board upon them; or tie their leaves 

 together, and cover them to their tips 

 with mould, making it rise to a point, 

 so as to throw oft' excessive rains. All 

 these methods succeed in dry seasons, 

 but in wet ones the plants, treated ac- 

 cording to any of them, are liable to 

 decay. 



The one which succeeds best in all 

 seasons is to fold the leaves round the 

 heart as much as possible in their 

 natural position ; and, being tied toge- 

 ther with a shred of bass-mat, covered 

 up entirely with coal-ashes in the form 

 of a cone, the surface being .rendered 



