KITCHEN-GARDEN VEGETABLES. 
tion of the Capsicum in gardens, witl the view 
of obtaining a home-grown supply, very de- 
sirable. 
Seeds should be sown in February or early 
in March, in pots or pans filled with light rich 
mould, and plunged in a hot-bed. When the 
young plants are about 2 inches high, they may 
be pricked out singly into 3-inch pots, from 
which they must be shifted on until in 6- or 8- 
inch pots, and in these they may be allowed to 
fruit. The plants should be kept near the glass 
in a warm vinery, pit, or stove, and water ought 
to be frequently given. In warm situations in 
the south of England fruit may be ripened in 
the open air. With this view plants should be 
hardened off towards the end of May, and 
planted out in June, on a border with a south | 
aspect, at 1 foot or 18 inches apart, watering at | 
planting, and subsequently in dry weather. In 
general, however, it is advisable to depend on 
plants under glass for a supply of ripe fruit; 
but where the green pods are in request a con- 
siderable portion of the plants may, in warm 
situations, be turned out-of-doors. The fruit 
ripens in September, and may be kept two or 
three years ina dry room. The seed keeps best 
in the pods, and remains good for four or five 
years. 
Varieties of Capsicum, mostly natives of the 
East :— 
Bell Pepper (C. grossum).—An annual or biennial, with 
large variable-shaped fleshy fruits. 
Bird Pepper (C. baccatum), Piment enragé of the French, | aS a carminative. 
a bushy perennial, with 
small, round, erect fruits. 
Guinea Pepper (C. an- 
nuum) (fig.1174), of which 
there are varieties pro- 
ducing red and yellow, 
long and short fruits. 
Long Yellow Capsicum. 
—Differs from Spanish 
Mammoth chiefly in the 
colour of the pods, which 
is bright-yellow. 
Purple Capsicum. — A 
robust shrub 3 feet high, 
with pods 2 to 3 inches 
long, variable in shape, 
coloured ___ purplish - red 
when ripe. Very hot to 
the taste. 
Red Tomato Capsicum 
(American Bonnet, Bonny, 
or Bonnet Perper) is like 
Fig. 1174.—Guinea Pepper (Capsicum 
annuum). 
the preceding, but red; very productive, and much milder | choke. 
than the small sorts. 
Shrubby Capsicum (C. frutescens), a bushy perennial, 
from which Cayenne Pepper is usually prepared. 
Spanish Mammoth Capsicum (fig. 1175) has large pods 
419 
Tomato Capsicum (C. dulce), Piment Tomate of the 
French, an annual producing fruit like a Tomato in size 
and form, yellow, and of comparatively mild flavour. 
Fig. 1175.—Spanish Mammoth Capsicum. 
Caraway (Carum Carui) (fig. 1176).—A 
biennial, native of Europe, including Britain, 
where it frequents waste places, growing | or 
2 feet high, and producing heads of white 
flowers in July. It has a fleshy Carrot-like 
root. The seeds are much used in confectionery, 
and for flavouring spirits and perfuming soap; 
it yields an oil, which is employed medicinally 
Considerable quantities are 
grown in Kssex and Kent for these purposes. 
Sow in drills 10 inches apart, in hight warm 
soil, in autumn, when the seeds are ripe, or in 
March or April. When the plants are 2 or 3 
inches high they should be thinned out to 8 
inches apart; the ground must be kept free 
from weeds, and stirred by an occasional hoeing. 
The seeds will ripen in the following year, in 
July or August. 
Cardoon (Cynara Cardunculus).—A perennial, 
native of Southern Europe. It is closely related 
to the Artichoke, and may have descended from 
the same species. It grows to a height of from 
4 to 6 feet, and its large pinnatified leaves are 
whitish beneath, and in some sorts armed on 
their margins with fine brown or yellow spines. 
The flower-heads resemble those of the Arti- 
The fleshy leaf-stalks are the edible 
part, as in the case of Celery. They are blanched, 
and, when properly cooked, constitute a tender 
and excellent vegetable, much esteemed, espe- 
much milder than the other kinds, and excellent for salads. cially on the Continent. The flowers. like those 
