LETTUCE 



VEGETABLE OABDEN 



1143 



ready for planting out a week or two 

 later. 



Priching out do. — The seedlings may 

 be thinned out about 9-12 in. apart in the 

 rows, which should have a similar dis- 

 tance, or a. little more, between them. 

 The young plants thus pulled up may be 

 transplanted in frames if early in the 

 year, or into a prepared bed out of doors 

 in a warm, sunny, and sheltered corner, 

 if the weather permits. 



About every 2 or 3 weeks from the 

 middle of March to the middle of August 

 a sowing may be made out of doors, 

 transplanting the seedlings when large 

 enough, as recommended above, selecting 

 dull showery weather if possible for this 

 last operation. It may be stated as a 

 general rule that plants from early and 

 late sowings are best grown on light and 

 rather dry soils in sunny situations, while 

 those for summer use are best in cool and 

 rather damp and partially shaded situa- 

 tions, where they are not so likely to 

 ' bolt,' that is, run to seed prematurely. 



When ground is scarce an early crop of 

 Lettuce may be planted between rows of 

 Beetroot, and as the Lettuce wiU come 

 off the soil before the Beetroot, no harm 

 will be done to the latter, and the extra 

 space will be beneficial later on. 



Watering. — During the hot and dry 

 summer months Lettuces reqtdre liberal 

 supplies of water, especially if they 

 happen to be grown on light soils in- 

 capable of retaining much moisture. If 

 not watered they are almost sure to 'bolt,' 

 and the entire crop may be lost. By 

 frequently stirring the soil between the 

 plants, or giving a mulching of short 

 manure, the soil is kept in a nice cool 

 condition rotmd the roots and excessive 

 evaporation is checked. 



Blanching. — When Lettuces are 

 nearly full grown and begin to ' heart,' 

 the inner leaves are whitened by having 

 a strand of raffia tied round the whole 

 plant about halfway up. Many of the 

 best ' Cos ' varieties curl the tops of the 

 leaves inwards, thus shielding the centre 

 ones from the light, and naturally blanch- 

 ing them. With such it is scarcely 

 necessary to tie the plants at all. 



Insect amd other Pests. — Slugs are 

 very fond of Lettuces, and as a precaution 

 against their attacks the soil should be 

 well dusted with Ume and soot. Where 

 the Lettuce beds are not too large they 

 may be watered with boiling water a day 



or two before sowing or planting. This 

 will effectually destroy the slugs, wire- 

 worms, or other pests harboured in the 

 soil. 



Birds, and especially sparrows, are 

 great marauders in some localities, and 

 the only way to save the young plants 

 from destruction is to cover them with 

 fine-meshed wire guards, or netting 

 stretched on stout stakes, but allowed to 

 droop at the edges to prevent entrance 

 and exit by that means. Thin black — not 

 white — cotton also stretched over the crop 

 will keep off birds. Not seeing the cotton 

 they get entangled in it and become 

 frightened off in consequence. 



A good dusting with lime and soot 

 about the plants wUl also be effective, as 

 the birds do not like the bitter taste of 

 this dressing. 



Varieties. — Broadly speaking Lettuces 

 are of two kinds, namely ' Cos ' and 

 ' Cabbage.' The Cos varieties are oblong 

 and more or less cylindrical in shape, 

 and are considered to belong to Lactuca 

 sativa proper, while the Cabbage varieties, 

 as the name indicates, are low and flat 

 with a Cabbage-like appearance, and are 

 supposed to be a distinct species, L. 

 capitata. These are usually best for use 

 in winter. 



The varieties useful for general cul- 

 tivation are : — 



Cabbage Lettuces : All the Tear 

 Kound, Brown Dutch, Commodore Nutt, 

 Hammersmith Hardy Green, Neapolitan, 

 and Tom Thumb. 



Cos Lettuces : Paris White, Paris 

 Green, Giant Cos, Brown or Bath Cos, 

 London White, and Leviathan. 



ENDIVE (CicHOEiUM Endivia). — 

 This excellent salad plant belongs to the 

 order Compositae (see p. 492), and is a 

 native of the East Indies. It has a 

 spreading rosette of smooth, lobed, deeply 

 cut and crisped leaves, which in a 

 blanched state are highly valued as a 

 salading. 



Soil. — Endive flourishes in the same 

 soil and situations as Lettuce — that is, in 

 any good and fairly light and rich garden 

 soil, and an open situation. Endive, 

 however, is a more hardy plant than 

 Lettuce, and is valuable for late autumn 

 and winter use. 



Sowing and Transplanting Seeds 



may be sown thinly at intervals of a 

 month or six weeks from the middle of 



