THE AMATEUR’S KITCHEN GARDEN. 
75 
in a north aspect all winter may not flower until June, and 
this will enlarge the scheme by a month at winding up. 
Nevertheless, by what may be termed the rough and ready 
way of growing broccoli, there must be a break in the supply. 
To ensure continuous supplies, other and more troublesome 
methods of procedure must be resorted to. This brings us to 
another section of the subject, namely : — 
Broccolis and Cauliflowers all the Year Round. — To 
ensure a continuous supply, there should be three sowings of 
broccolis, as above advised, and a dozen sorts, at least, should 
be grown. But cauliflowers must be grown also, and there 
should be three sowings of these, one at the end of August, 
another at the end of September, and another in February. 
In the far north, the August sowing will be most useful ; in 
the far south, it is not advisable to sow until the beginning of 
October. It is impossible to advise for every climate, but this 
rule may be useful, that large plants are not to be desired 
before winter, and, therefore, a little judgment must be 
exercised in determining the dates of sowing. As soon as the 
plants are large enough to handle, they should be potted or 
planted in a bed in a frame in rather light soil, and be kept 
well aired all the winter to prevent spindling or rotting at the 
collar. As they will stand five, or even seven, degrees of frost 
without harm, it is not advisable to keep them closely muffled 
up at any time during winter; for, indeed, if they are 
weakened by coddling, they will in the end come to no good. 
The February sowing should be aided with a gentle heat, and 
the plants potted as soon as large enough, and after about ten 
days’ enjoyment of a greenhouse temperature to assist them in 
filling the pots with roots, should be removed to a cold frame, 
and be gradually “ hardened ” preparatory to planting. Put 
out the autumn-sown plants first, and shelter them if the 
weather is bleak, but it is better to wait a week or two, and 
even to shift a lot into larger pots to keep them growing than 
to plant too early, for the check of exposure to cold, may 
cause them to “ button,” that is, produce heads the size of a 
florin, or crown-piece, of no use at all. From these several 
plantations you ought to cut fine heads from June onwards 
far into the autumn. 
Now, let us suppose you have by some accident lost your 
autumn sown stock, and are speculating how to gain time, and 
keep up the supply by some other method. It would in this 
