i8 



Garden and Forest. 



[January 9, iS 



February or early in March, and well cared for, nine-tenths 

 of the plants will be strong enough to force the same 

 season. 



My treatment of the crop the past year was this : As soon as 

 the seed was received, about the tenth of February, a boy was 

 set to crack the capsules which contain it. Tiie seed was 

 sowed in drills between rows of Smilax, in a temperature of 

 about fifty-five degrees. The plants appeared quickly, and as 



They were stripped of their leaves and buried in sand out-of- 

 doors, so that they could be reached from time to time during 

 the winter. 



The first lot for forcing was brouglit in the last day of No- 

 vember, and planted in rows eight inches apart, each way, in 

 ordinary soil. Tlie temperature was kept at fifty-five to sixty 

 degrees. The house was kept as dark as tight boards all around 

 and over head could make it. Water was given twice a week, 



Fig. 85. — Ginnt Bamboo ( Deiidrocalamtis gigantciis) in the Botanic Garden, Ceylon. — See page 14. 



soon as the two seed leaves were developed and the third leaf 

 could be seen, they were potted into two-inch pots and placed 

 close to the ^ass, in about the same temperature. They were 

 kept well watered, and often moved to prevent their rooting 

 in the soil beneath the pots, until the end of May, when they 

 were planted in the open ground, fifteen inches apart in the 

 rows, which were three feet apart. After this they received 

 exactly the same attention as did other memliers of the Cab- 

 bage family. 



On the 7th of November the roots were dug and stored, 

 many of the largest ones being two inches in diameter, and 

 the smallest three-fourtlis of an inch in diameter, althougli 

 there were few of the last size. 



and the crop was ready to cut on Christmas. In appearance it 

 was like very fair, perfectly blanched celery. A succession of 

 crops is now following, and as the season advances, two weeks, 

 instead of three, will be long enough for forcing a crop. 



It is surprising that Sea Kale, is so rarely grown in this 

 country, since it is a delightful dish when properly cooked 

 and served. It should never be used when in the least wilted 

 or flabby. When not perfectly crisp it should be immersed en- 

 tirely in water for six or seven hours before it is plunged in 

 the boiling water. This water should contain enough salt to 

 give it a distinct flavor, and a lump of soda as large as a hickory 

 nut will improve the appearance and flavor of the vegetable. 



Pearl River, N. Y. JoJlU Thorpe. 



