314 



THE VEGETABLE GARDEN 



fortnight before Asparagus comes 

 in, and for some weeks after- 

 wards. From a south border cut- 

 ting generally commences early in 

 April, and continues until the end 

 of June. Some say they like it 

 better than Asparagus. When pro- 

 perly grown, the young shoots should 

 be almost as thick as the little 

 finger, and in gathering it should 

 be cut under the ground some- 

 thing the same as Asparagus. In 

 preparing it for use, if the outer 

 skin or bark have become tough, 

 strip it off from the bottom upwards, 

 and then wash and tie it up in 

 bunches like Asparagus. It is best 



boiled in plenty of water. When 

 tender, strain and serve simply, or 

 upon toast. Some have melted 

 butter with it, others eat it simply 

 with the gravy and meat. In cul- 

 tivation, the Mercury, as it is called 

 also, will grow anywhere ; but, to 

 have it in the best form, good cul- 

 tivation is necessary. To this end 

 you cannot have the ground too 

 deep nor too rich; plant as early 

 in the spring as possible to get an 

 abundant yield of shoots, and to 

 get them as strong as possible. In 

 planting, put the rows i8 in. apart, 

 and the plants i ft. apart in the row. 

 It is wild in some parts of England. 



GOURDS 



Cucurbita, L. CucurbitacecB. 



French, Courges. German, Speise-Kiirbiss. Flemish and Dutch, Pompoen. Danish, 

 Grceskar. Italian, Zucca. Spanish, Calabaza. Portuguese, Abobora. 



The cultivation of Gourds dates from a very early period, and 

 few vegetables are more extensively grown. The almost innumer- 

 able varieties of them which are met with have long since induced 

 the conclusion that they could not all have possibly originated from 

 a single type, but to M. Charles Naudin belongs the credit of having 

 first thrown light upon the chaos of species and varieties, and of 

 having ascertained the origin and parentage of the different forms, 

 all of which he refers to three very distinct species, viz. Cucurbita 

 7naxiina, Duch., C. moscJiata, Duch., and C. Pepo, L. We shall 

 describe in succession the varieties which have sprung from each of 

 these different botanical types, following the classification of 

 M. Naudin, and we may remark that we do not know any form 

 of Gourd that should necessarily be considered a hybrid between 

 any two of these species. Although the various forms of cultivated 

 Gourds have, as we have just observed, originated from plants 

 which differ in their botanical characteristics and also in their 

 native habitats, they nevertheless, in their mode of growth and in 

 their fruit, exhibit a striking resemblance, from which it is easy to 

 understand how it was that they were for a long time supposed to 

 be mere varieties of a single species. They are all annual climbing 

 plants, furnished with tendrils ; their stems are perfectly herbaceous, 

 very long, pliant, and tough, angular and rough ; the leaves are 

 broad, with hollow stalks, and roundish or kidney-shaped lobes 



