Gardening for Amateurs 



1067 



is cleared of early Potatoes. It is an advan- 

 tage to transplant young seedling Cabbage 

 plants, as soon as they are large enough to 

 handle, from the seed-bed into another 

 border, planting them 6 inches apart. The 

 extra space thus provided causes them to be 

 sturdy and strong. When lifted for their 

 permanent planting they should be taken 

 up with a good ball of soil to the roots and 

 watered in ; they will then suffer little or no 

 check in being transplanted. This advice 

 applies to all the Cabbage class. It is a great 

 advantage to plant vegetables, especially 

 those the leaves of which are consumed, like 

 the Cabbage and Lettuce, in dull, showery 

 weather. If the ground happens to be un- 

 commonly dry, it is essential to soak the drills 

 with water before planting. After planting, 

 continue to give water in dry weather until 

 roots have taken hold of the soil and fresh 

 growth has started. 



Drumhead Cabbage. Both the large and 

 small varieties of this are useful, especially 

 in spring ; being hardier than the ordinary 

 Cabbage, they usually pass through the 

 winter safely. 



Red or Pickling Cabbage should be sown 

 in August, at the same time as the chief 

 Cabbage crop, and grown in the same way. 

 It may also be sown in spring and treated 

 like other sorts. It is ready for pickling as 

 soon as the centre is firm. 



Capsicum and Ghilli. Well grown, 

 these plants are both ornamental and useful. 

 Seed is sown in February in small pots of 

 sandy soil in a warm propagating frame or 

 greenhouse. As soon as the seedlings are 

 large enough to handle, put them singly in 

 3-inch pots in loamy soil with a sprinkling of 

 sand added. Keep them in the greenhouse, 

 shade from bright sunshine for a few days, 

 and then expose to full sunlight. Give air 

 freely in w r arm weather. Towards the end of 

 April the plants will be well rooted and large 

 enough to put in their fruiting pots. The 

 most vigorous may go in 6-inch flower-pots 

 and others in 5-inch pots ; the soil should 

 consist of turfy loam 2 parts, decayed manure 

 1 part, and leaf -mould 1 part, adding a 

 sprinkling of sand and bone-meal. They 

 should still be grown in a warm greenhouse, 

 adding more air as the weather becomes 

 warmer, until they are fully grown. As the 



time of flowering approaches they need a 

 cool and airy atmosphere, and subsequently 

 ordinary greenhouse treatment suits them. 



Gardoon. This plant is very much like 

 the Globe Artichoke, to which it is nearly 

 related. It is largely cultivated on the Con- 

 tinent, but in this country it is not much 

 sought after. However, a few plants are 

 grown in most gardens. Seeds are sown in 

 April in a warm greenhouse or frame, and the 

 plants grown under glass until the end of 

 May ; they are potted in 5-inch pots, using 

 loamy soil and leaf-mould in equal propor- 

 tions, and are planted out early in June, after 

 being previously hardened by exposure to 

 plenty of air night and day. Prepare a 

 trench for them as for Celery, placing the 

 plants 2| feet apart. They require rich soil. 

 Water freely in dry weather. In August, 

 blanching of the stems should be started by 

 gathering the leaves together and securing 

 them to a strong stake, or if the plants are 

 large, three stakes are better. Cover up by 

 wrapping mats or hay bands round the 

 stakes, then thatch over with straw, so 

 that light is effectively shut out, and earth- 

 up round the base of the plants. Blanching 

 takes from nine to ten weeks. It is the stalks 

 of the inner leaves that are used for cooking. 



Carrot. This is an important crop. It 

 used to be the custom to make only two 

 sowings of Carrots one in February, of the 

 Early Horn variety, and one in March, for 

 the main crop, of long-rooted Carrots. But 

 small young roots have become favourites. 

 These are tender and free from the hard 

 core found in the older and larger Carrots. 

 The most suitable soil is a deeply-dug 

 sandy loam, manured the previous year for 

 another crop. The Carrot can scarcely be 

 grown successfully in some old gardens where 

 the soil is rich and full of humus unless lime 

 is added freely in autumn. On such a soil it 

 is useless to try to grow the long-rooted 

 varieties, except by following the method 

 practised in growing Carrots for exhibition, 

 namely, making a hole 3 feet deep with an 

 iron crowbar, and filling it with prepared 

 light loamy soil. Two seeds are sown in 

 each hole, about 1 inch deep, one plant 

 (the stronger) being allowed to develop. On 

 shallow soils the Short Horn variety will 

 succeed best. 



