78 JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



mats or other protective material in abundance, ought cer- 

 tainly to store a considerable quantity of well-grown plants of 

 the Improved Broad-leaved Batavian for winter use, not merely 

 for salads, but also for cooking as a vegetable. 



Leeks, again, are not so generally appreciated a vegetable as 

 could be desired. A few (or many) are grown in most gardens, 

 but they are used principally for flavouring soups, only a com- 

 paratively few realising that well-blanched and properly cooked 

 Leeks are by no means a despicable vegetable. One great point 

 in their favour is their hardiness, and probably, if we had more 

 extra- severe winters, Leeks would become far more popular than 

 they now are. 



Both Cardoons and Celery are turned to good account in 

 some kitchens, but unless they are properly cooked few would 

 care to eat either the one or the other. The first-named are not 

 so much grown as of old, few gardeners caring to take so much 

 trouble as their culture entails, for no good purpose. If modern 

 cooks either knew how or cared to prepare them for the table, 

 Cardoons would without doubt be forthcoming. 



When we come to consider the root crops proper — that is to 

 say, those vegetables which are cultivated solely for their edible 

 roots — my ire against the inferior cooks becomes even more pro- 

 nounced. How many employers ever see a decent Potato on 

 their table ? Not one in twenty. Cooks either do not know 

 how, or do not care to take the trouble, to serve them properly, 

 and instead of their being bright in colour, dry and mealy, the 

 Potatoes are usually nearly black, sodden, and uneatable. Occa- 

 sionally the gardener may be to blame in the matter, his selec- 

 tion of varieties either being too extensive and bewildering to 

 the cook, or else unsuited to the soil and positions in which they 

 are grown. As far as the majority of town dwellers are con- 

 cerned they are very much at the mercy of market growers^ 

 whose sole aim is to grow as heavy a crop as possible regardless 

 of quality. 



Take Parsnips again. Every gardener grows them, but in 

 how many cases do the cooks send them to the table in a state 

 at to eat ? Doubtless they are frequently grown too large, but if 

 each and all were boiled nearer one and a half hours instead of 

 about twenty minutes, they would become tender right through, 

 find a really excellent dish be available. 



