CAULIFLOWER. 71 



subsoil being considered the most favorable. But 

 recent developments have shown most conclusively 

 that the condition of the soil is a more important 

 matter, and that climatic influences have more to do 

 with success or failure than either. We have often 

 seen as good crops on light sandy soil as on the best 

 loam. Whatever the nature of the soil may be, new 

 ground, or rather sod ground, can always be more 

 surely depended upon for a crop, than to let it follow 

 some other. 



Cauliflower is more sensitive to checks in its 

 various stages of growth than cabbage. In the seed 

 bed, a strong sturdy growth should be encouraged, 

 rather than a rapid one. With this, as with many 

 other crops, it is a mistake to make the seed bed too 

 rich ; in such the plants make too rapid growth, and 

 are much more liable to a check when transplanted. 

 It is better, by far, to start the plants in a poor soil, 

 and transfer them to a richer one, as they will be 

 then in a better condition to assimilate plant food. 



The most important part of cauliflower cultiva- 

 tion is the growing of the plants. The lack of sys- 

 tem and knowledge of the plant's necessities in this 

 respect have been the causes of more failure of crops 

 than all others combined. Good plants can never 

 be obtained by leaving them where the seed is sown 

 until they are supposed to be ready for transplanting. 

 As soon as the second leaves are half an inch long, 

 the plants should be pricked out into finely-prepared 

 soil and set half an inch apart in the rows, one inch 

 apart. Again, when the third pair of leaves is one 

 inch long, they should be again pricked out, this 

 time for convenience of transplanting in the field 

 into shallow boxes, say, two inches deep. Set the 



