SEA-KALE 



653 



the glass, which latter also keeps 

 all dark and blanches the Kale. 

 Sea-kale growers try to have a good 

 cutting on Lord Mayor's Day ; but 

 this is considered too early for 

 regular forcing. 



Regular forcing commences about 

 the first fortnight in November, and 

 large trenches or beds, on which 

 Cucumbers were grown during the 

 summer, are cleared out and re- 

 filled with hot manure, over which 

 8 in. of soil is placed, and therein 

 the Sea-kale is planted thickly in 

 lines across the bed, which are about 

 5 in. apart, and about the same 

 space for a margin is left empty on 

 each side. Amongst the roots, and 

 all round the beds, rows of stakes 

 are inserted, 18 in. of their length 

 being left above the soil, after 

 which some 6 or 7 in. deep of short 

 litter is strewed over the whole 

 surface of the beds, which are then 

 covered over with mats supported 

 on the ends of the stakes. Hoops 

 and mats are often used instead of 

 stakes. In about three or four 

 weeks after the beds are made up 

 cutting begins, when it is necessary 

 to uncover the beds as the operation 

 proceeds, drawing the short litter off 

 the crowns to get at them, and re- 

 placing it as speedily as possible, as 

 all the crowns are not fit to cut at 

 the same time. 



Beds for later crops are prepared 

 on a well-sheltered plot of ground 

 as near home and the manure-heap 

 as possible. The ground is marked 

 off into spaces either 4 or 5 ft. wide, 

 with alleys 2 ft. wide between them. 

 These spaces are used as beds, over 



which the soil from the alleys is 

 placed, after finely breaking it, until 

 the alleys are 20 in. deep. The 

 Sea-kale crowns are then all lined 

 into these beds as described in the 

 case of earlier beds, and thus the 

 beds are left uncovered until they 

 are required for forcing ; but, as a 

 rule, two or more of them are always 

 being forced, and others started to 

 succeed them. As these beds have 

 no bottom-heat, it is not necessary 

 that they should be immediately 

 covered, as in that case they, being 

 incited at the bottom, would grow, 

 no matter whether their crowns are 

 cared for or not ; but, in this in- 

 stance, having no exciting agent, 

 and being in a dormant state, they 

 await the grower's convenience. In 

 forcing them, the alleys between 

 the beds are firmly filled with fer- 

 menting manure, and the beds being 

 covered, as formerly stated, with 

 short litter and mats supported on 

 the upright stakes, all is finished. 

 The Kale takes a longer time to 

 push into growth by this means 

 than when forced on a manure-bed, 

 and it does not come quite so 

 regularly. This method, however, 

 has the advantage of less trouble 

 and risk, and great convenience in 

 keeping up a supply until it can be 

 produced from the open-air beds, 

 after which the forced roots are 

 removed to a heap by themselves, 

 or to the piggery, where their 

 vitality is sure to be destroyed. If 

 conveyed to a field at once, with the 

 manure which formed the beds, and 

 dug in, they would grow again, and 



prove a future annoyance. 



There are only a few varieties of Sea-kale in cultivation : — 

 The Common, the young blanched leaves of which have a 



purplish tinge when they are exposed to the light. 



The Lily white, the young leaves of which do not become 



purple, but change to green under similar conditions. In other 



respects the two varieties are identical. 



