Kale 



339 



KALE OR BORECOLE 



As compared with cabbage, kale requires less exacting 

 care, is hardier, and the seed is usually sown where the 

 plants are to ^nature. Kale is grown for its large 

 leaves. Kale may be likened to a cabbage plant that 

 produces no heads. In fact, it is a form of the cabbage 

 species that is very near the aboriginal type. The 

 plants are extremely hardy and are therefore grown 

 mostly for fall or spring nse. Greens from kale are 

 prized in the market only very late or early in the 

 season when many other kinds cannot be had in quantity.. 

 In the North, kale is ordinarily sown in the spring, the 

 seeds being placed where the plants are to stand. The 

 rows may be far enough apart to allow of horse cultiva- 

 tion, and the plants may eventually stand, after the 

 thinning process, from ten to twenty inches apart, 

 allowing each plant an opportunity to develop to its 

 best. The plants are not used until late fall or even 

 winter. Often they are allowed to stand in the field all 

 winter and are not injured by freezing, not even in the 

 northern states. The older leaves and leaf -stalks are 

 usually improved by being frozen. The tenderest leaves 

 are picked from the plants at intervals, or the whole 

 plant may be harvested at once. For early spring use 

 the seed ordinarily is sown in late summer or early fall 

 in the South and middle South, and the plants stand out 

 of doors during the whole winter and are ready for use 

 ver3' early in the spring. In the northernmost states, 

 however, these young plants are likely to perish unless 

 protected under frames; therefore fall -sown kale is rela- 



