Spinach  ; SeaJcale  ; Turnips. 
95 
forced,  but  cut  fi'om  the  open  ground,  is  worth  about  -iOZ.  ])er 
acre.  Wlien  forced  it  is  worth  considerably  more  ; but  the 
ex])enses  of  forcing  have  to  be  taken  into  consideration. 
It  can  be  grown  either  from  seed  or  root-cuttings.  Sow 
seed  in  March  or  April  in  drills  two  feet  apart,  and  when 
the  plants  are  several  inches  above  the  soil  thin  them  out  to 
fifteen  inches  apart.  These  seedlings  require  a second  year’s 
growth  before  they  are  capable  of  producing  really  good  Sea- 
kale.  After  their  second  year  of  growth  they  are  suitable 
either  for  lifting  and  forcing,  or  for  blanching  and  cutting 
where  they  have  grown. 
By  growing  Seakale  from  root-cuttings  a year  is  saA^ed. 
VerA'  strong  plants  are  ])roduced  in  one  year.  Cuttings  from 
old  plants  are  pre{)ared  by  selecting  roots  from  half  an  inch  to 
three-quarters  of  an  inch  in  diameter  and  al)out  five  inches  in 
length.  The  end  (the  thickest)  nearest  the  main  root  is  cut 
straight  across  and  the  other  end  is  cut  in  a sloping  direction  ; 
this  should  be  done  at  the  moment  of  making  the  cutting  in 
order  to  distinguish  one  end  from  the  other,  and  that  they  may 
be  planted  right  end  upwards.  To  avoid  the  possibility  of 
haA'ing  gaps  in  the  ])lantation  the  cuttings  should  be  tied  in 
bundles  of  any  given  number  and  buried  in  soil  several  inches 
until  groAvth  buds  haA'^e  formed  at  the  top  end  of  the  cuttings  ; 
this  usually  brings  us  to  the  end  of  April  or  beginning  of 
May. 
Plant  the  cuttings  with  a dibber,  leaving  the  top  of  each 
cutting  about  one  inch  below  the  surface  of  the  soil,  and  plant 
them  at  distances  apart  according  to  the  purpose  for  which 
they  are  grown,  i.e.,  firstly,  for  lifting  and  forcing  entirely  ; 
secondly,  for  groAving  and  cutting  from  the  oj)en  ground ; 
thirdly,  for  both  these  methods  combined.  In  the  first  case 
the  cuttings  may  be  planted  in  roAvs  two  feet  apart ; in  the 
second  case  they  must  be  ])lanted  in  rows  three  feet  apart ; and 
in  the  third  case  they  may  be  ])lanted  in  rows  tAventy  inches 
apart — every  alternate  row  to  be  lifted  for  forcing,  and  the 
others  to  be  coA^ered  Avith  soil  from  betAveen  the  roAvs  to  a 
depth  of  nine  or  ten  inches  ; this  blanches  the  Seakale  during 
its  groAvth  the  folloAving  April.  When  the  outdoor  Seakale  is 
all  cut  the  roots  should  be  carefully  cleared  from  the  ground 
and  a new  site  given  to  the  next  year’s  crop. 
Turnips. — The  Turnip  is  a hardy  biennial  ; its  root  is  hard 
and  woody  in  the  Avild  state,  but  cultivation  has  converted 
it  into  the  useful  vegetable  it  is,  though  bad  cultiA'ation  and 
