126 Home Vegetable Gardening 



round. The first sowing for the spring under-glass 

 crop is made in January or February. These are 

 handled as for the planting outside — see Chapter 

 VIII. — but are set in the frames six to eight inches 

 each way, according to variety. Ventilate freely 

 during the day when over 55° give 45° at night. 

 Water only when needed, but then thoroughly, and 

 preferably only on mornings of bright sunny days. 



The plants for first outdoor crops are handled as 

 already described. After April ist planting should 

 be made every two weeks. During July and August 

 the seed-beds must be kept shaded and moist. In 

 August, first sowing for fall under-glass crop is 

 made, which can be matured in coldframes; later 

 sowings going into hotbeds. 



In quality, I consider the hard-heading varieties 

 superior to the loose-heading sorts, but of course 

 that is a matter of taste. The former is best for 

 crops maturing from the middle of June until Sep- 

 tember, the latter for early and late sowings, as they 

 mature more quickly. The cos type is good for sum- 

 mer growing but should be tied up to blanch well. 

 To be at its best, lettuce should be grown very rap- 

 idly, and the use of top-dressings of nitrate are par- 

 ticularly beneficial with this crop. The ground 

 should be light, warm, and very rich, and cultivation 

 shallow but frequent. 



Mushroom: — While the mushroom is not a gar- 



