KITCHEN-GARDEN VEGETABLES. 
inches asunder. Some of them may be taken 
up young in September, and they will be in per- 
fection in November, and continue so till the 
plants begin to exhibit signs of pushing up 
flower-stems, when they should be taken up and 
stored in sand. The flowers, which are white, 
appear in July and August. The seeds, which 
ripen in autumn, should only be saved from the 
plants which flower the second year. 
Sorrel (fumex).—The leaves of Sorrel are 
used in soups, salads, and sauces, especially on 
the Continent, where they are also used as a 
substitute for Spinach. 
Sorrel grows well in almost any soil, but suc- 
ceeds best in one that is rich, deep, and rather 
moist. All the sorts may be propagated by 
dividing the roots in March or April, and this 
method is that which must be adopted in pro- 
pagating the dicecious kinds when male plants 
are required. The best plants are obtained from 
seeds sown either broadcast or in drills, on well- 
dug ground, raked fine, and covered with fine 
earth to the depth of 4 inch. The distance 
between the drills may be 15 inches for the 
small-leaved sorts and 18 inches for the large- 
leaved kinds. When the young plants are 2 or 
3 inches high they should be thinned out to 1 
foot apart in the row, and the thinnings may 
be planted at the above distances, water being 
_given at planting, and afterwards till they take 
root. About two months after sowing, some of 
the leaves may be gathered. In doing this, the 
plants are generally cut over; but the market- 
gardeners near Paris prefer gathering the leaves 
singly, always taking those which are full grown, 
leaving the younger to increase in size; and this 
is the best plan. As the acidity of the leaves is 
increased in the heat of summer, a small quantity 
to come in for use at that season should be sown 
or planted in a shady and rather moist border. 
All the care necessary is to hoe the ground 
between the rows occasionally, to fork it in 
spring or autumn, and to take up the plants, 
divide, and replant them every three or four 
years, or less frequently if they are growing 
vigorously and produce full-sized leaves. 
Three species and several varieties are culti- 
vated :— 
Common Sorrel (R. Acetosa).—A perennial, native of 
Britain, where it grows naturally in meadows and pas- 
tures. The varieties are:—Common Garden Sorrel, Belle- 
ville Sorrel (fig. 1284), Blistered-leaved Sorrel. The second 
sort is the best, and is the kind generally cultivated near 
Paris. 
French or Round-leaved Sorrel (R. scutatus).—A hardy 
perennial, native of France and Switzerland. Its stem is 
Vou. II. 
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from 12 to 18 inches high; the leaves are roundish, heart- 
shaped, entire, glaucous, and smooth. 
Mountain Sorred (Rk. montanus).—A hardy perennial, 
native of Europe. There are two varieties, the type 
and the Green Mountain, both of French origin. The 
leaves of the first sort are slightly blistered, larger than 
Fig. 1284.—Belleville Sorrel. 
those of the Common Sorrel, of a paler green, and not 
so acid. The leaves of Green Mountain possess much 
acidity, are of darker green, larger, more abundant, and 
earlier in spring 
Spinach (Spinacia oleracea).—An annual, 
supposed to be a native of Northern Asia. 
The soil for Spinach should be deep and rich, 
neither very stiff nor very light. The ground 
for the summer sowings should be rather moist, 
otherwise frequent waterings will be necessary; 
whilst for the winter crops a dry warm spot 
must be selected. In all cases the ground should 
be deeply dug, and if necessary manured with 
stable-dung. Blood, guano, and other nitro- 
genous manures are also used. 
The first sowing may be made in the middle 
of February, and from that time a small quantity 
should be sown every three weeks till May, and 
then every ten days till August if a constant 
supply is required, for the summer crops soon 
run to seed. In the first week in August, and 
again in the third week of that month, the 
principal crop of Flanders and Lettuce-leaved 
for winter use should be sown; and _ lastly, 
another sowing of the same varieties may take 
place in the beginning of September. The sow- 
ings for summer use should be made in a some- 
what shady situation, with the view of preventing 
the plants from running to seed so soon as they 
otherwise would. Frequently the summer crops 
are sown in a single drill between rows of Peas 
or Beans; in this way they do very well, and in 
rich soil do not injure the plants between which 
they are grown. 
The ground having been deeply dug, the seeds 
should be sown in drills about 1 inch deep, 12 
inches apart, but for the Flanders and Lettuce- 
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