VEGETABLES DESCRIPTION AND CULTURE. 423 



tribe that is not injured by gathering the earth about its 

 stem. Take up the bulbs when ripe, dry in the shade, 

 and preserve as garlic. They may be kept until the next 

 spring. 



i 'se. — The shallot, though more pungent than some 

 members of the onion family, is preferred by many in 

 seasoning gravies, soups, sauces, and other culinary pre- 

 parations, and is by some considered almost indispen- 

 sable in the preparation of a good beefsteak. It can be 

 pickled in the same manner as the onion. 



SKIRKET.— ( Slum sisarum.) 



Skirret is a perennial Umbelliferous plant from China, 

 known in Europe since 1548. It grows a foot high, with 

 pinnate lower leaves. The root is composed of several 

 fleshy tubers, the size of the little finger, joined at the 

 crown. 



Culture. — Skirret likes a deep, rich, rather moist soil, 

 with the manure applied at the bottom. The situation 

 should be open. It is propagated by seeds, or by offsets 

 of established roots. Seedlings produce the best roots. 

 Sow in spring, when the ground becomes warm, in drills 

 an inch deep and ten inches apart. When the plants are 

 an inch or two high, thin to six or eight inches apart. 

 Cultivate like salsify, and keep clear from weeds. They 

 will be fit for use in August, but can remain in the ground 

 to use as wanted all winter. Slips of the old roots may 

 be set out nine inches apart and cultivated in the same 

 manner. Leave some of the plants in the ground, and 

 they will throw up seed-stalks and ripen seed during the 

 summer following. 



Use. — The tubers are boiled and are very sweet, some- 

 what like the parsnip, and are thought more palatable by 

 some, but are disagreeable to many. They are boiled, 

 and served up with butter, or cold, with vinegar and oil, 



