Culture and Forcing of Rhubarb. 175 



but it grows to the highest perfection in strong turfy loam, well 

 trenched and profusely enriched with horse-dung and decayed 

 succulent vegetable leaves, putting the roughest dung in the 

 bottom of the trench, and the rottenest towards the surface. I 

 would also recommend rhubarb plants to be oftener transplanted 

 than they generally are, as it is proved beyond a doubt that this 

 vegetable attains a much greater degree of perfection for culi- 

 nary purposes by frequently undergoing that process. When 

 wanted for medicinal purposes, however, the case is widely dif- 

 ferent, in consequence of the root not attaining all its medicinal 

 properties till it is ten or eleven years old ; consequently the 

 less it is disturbed the better, and the foliage must also remain 

 untouched. 



As to the manner of forcing it, there are numerous systems 

 in practice, this emboldens me to lay before you the plan which 

 I have followed pretty successfully ; I do not mean to say that 

 it is new, but it certainly is not generally adopted in this part of 

 the country. In place of the general system of blanching it 

 under sea-kale pots, I would recommend square boxes, 2 ft. 

 square and 4 ft. high, open at both ends, with a cover for one 

 end of each, placing a box on each root ; the roots must be 4 ft. 

 apart in the row, and 5 ft. between the rows, to admit of linings 

 of hot dung in such a state of fermentation as when used for 

 cucumber frames, putting a little rough litter at the bottom, to 

 prevent the hot dung from injuring the roots, which would cause 

 the stalks to draw up weakly. As soon as the linings get cold 

 and sunk, they must be renewed, by adding a little fresh litter, 

 and mixing it with the old, making the lining as high as the 

 box, and putting a little on the cover. Two linings, in the 

 generality of cases, will be sufficient to force the stalks as high 

 as the box ; and, if not too rapidly stimulated by exuberant heat, 

 the stalks will be stouter by this method of forcing than by any 

 other that I am aware of. When it is not a matter of conse- 

 quence to have the stalks so very stout, more can be obtained 

 from a given space of ground, by having the plants considerablv 

 less apart from each other in the row, and constructing a sort of 

 skeleton span roof over the row, by means of stout upright stakes 

 6 ft. apart, stuck into the ground on each side of it and joined 

 at the top ; upon these rails are to be nailed 8 in. apart the long 

 way of the row, and then thatched all over with a good lining 

 of hot dung, renewing it as occasion requires. The stalks, of 

 course, will not be so stout as they can be obtained by the other 

 system, which is adopted by many eminent gardeners in the South 

 of Scotland. 



There are many places, however, where the gardener has not 

 dung at command for the forcing of early rhubarb, when re- 

 course must be had to taking up the roots with as large balls 



