END 



[ 356 ] 



ENG 



iirm and smooth with the trowel. Sand 

 will do, but ashes are equally uure- 

 tentive of moisture, whilst they are 

 much superior in absorbing heat, which 

 is so beneticial in the hastening of the 

 process. If the simple mode of drawing 

 the leaves together is adopted to effect 

 this blanching, they must be tied very 

 close, and, in a week after the first tying, 

 a second ligature must be passed round 

 the middle of the plant, to prevent the 

 heart-leaves bursting out. A dry after- 

 noon, when the plants are entirely free 

 from moisture, should be selected, 

 whichever mode is adopted. 



A very excellent mode is to spread 

 over the surface of the bed about an 

 inch in depth of pit-sand, and covering 

 each plant with a small pot made of 

 earthenware, painted both within and 

 on the outside to exclude the wet 

 that worst hindrance of blanching. To 

 avoid this, the pots should be taken 

 off daily to allow the plants to dry, and 

 the insides of the pots wiped dry. A 

 sea kale pot in miniature, like the an- 

 nexed figure, is to be preferred j and if 



made of zinc or other metal it would 

 be better, because not porous and ad- 

 missive of moisture. 



To obtain Seed. The finest and 

 soundest plants should be selected of 

 the last plantation. For a small family 

 three or four plants of each variety 

 will be sufficient. Plant these in March 

 beneath a south fence, about a foot 

 from it and eighteen inches apart. As 

 the flower-stem advances, fasten it to a 

 stake, or, if they are placed beneath 

 palings, by a string, to be gathered as 

 the seed upon it ripens ; for if none 

 are gathered until the whole plant is 

 changing colour, the first ripened and 

 best seed will have scattered and be 

 lost. Each branch must be laid, as it 

 is cut, upon a cloth in the sun ; and 

 when perfectly dry, the seed beaten 

 out, cleansed, and stored, 



ENGINE. This name is 

 applied .to many contri- 

 vances for supplying water 

 to plants. 



1. The pump-syringe, or 

 syrinyc-cnyine, can be sup- 

 plied with water from a 

 common bucket, from 

 which it sucks the water 

 through a perforated base. 

 The handle is sometimes 

 made to work like that of 

 the common pump. 



2. The barrow watering - 

 oiyinc is represented in 

 the figure below. It will 

 throw the jet of water to 

 a distance of forty or fifty 

 feet, or somewhat less if a 

 rose is upon the end of 

 the delivery-pipe. It holds 

 from twenty to thirty gal- 

 lons of water ; but may be 

 made, with a leather-hose 

 attached, to communicate 

 with a pond or other re- 

 servoir of water. 



3. The curved barrel- 



