62 
AMERICAN AGrRIC ULTCRIST 
[February, 
mental foliage, and it we mistake not, it is destined 
to meet with a cordial reception in this country 
by all the lovers of new and beautiful plants. 
Experience With Vegetables in 1877. 
BY PETER HENDERSON. 
[As an aid to those who, bewildered by the great 
variety offered by the catalogues, lind it difficult to 
make a selection of vegetables, we have usually 
given in February a list of those we regard as re¬ 
liable. While it is desirable that the main crops 
should be of sorts, the value of which is well estab¬ 
lished, we would not discourage the trial of novel¬ 
ties, of which many are offered every year, the 
testing of these in comparison with the older kinds 
adds much to the interest of gardening. This year, 
Mr. Henderson gives us the results of his experi¬ 
ence, which in the main agrees with our own.— -Ed.] 
For a number of years past we have set apart a 
piece of our ground on Jersey City Heights, N. J., 
for testing the relative merits of all the leading 
kinds of vegetables in general use. Every class is 
treated exactly alike. All of each class are sown 
the same day, and in every subsequent operation, 
the greatest care is taken that all are treated alike, 
whether sown in hot-bed to be transplanted, or 
when sown in the open ground. Our “ Trial Book” 
shows the following results of the various tests. 
We name, however, only the varieties having merit, 
all such as were tested and found to be inferior 
either in earliness or quality, are cither not named 
here at all or merely noticed to indicate, wherein, 
in our estimation, the want of merit lies. About 
an average of 25 varieties of each kind of vegetables 
were tested, and at least 50 plants of each variety : 
Beans, Bush .—Early Mohawk is a few days earlier 
than Valentine, which is yet tlie best for general 
crop. Black Wax is a tine stringless variety. 
Refugee, late and largely used for pickling. 
Beans, Pole .—Large Lima is still the favorite. 
Dutch Case Knife is also an excellent sort, and the 
Giant Wax is a stringless snap bean, but a climber. 
Beets.— For first early we find Egyptian best, next 
the Blood Turnip, and for late the Long Blood. 
Bassano is early, but objectionable for market, 
on account of its very light color. 
Mangels and Sugar-Beets .—In an impartial trial of 
the four best known sorts, Norbiton Giant gave 
20 per cent more weight per acre than any other. 
Cabbages .—The seeds were sown in hot-bed on 
March 1st, and the plants set out in the open ground 
the first week in April. The Early Wakefield still 
stands unrivalled as earliest and best of its size, it 
being in fine marketable order on June 15. Early 
Summer, however, that came only one week later, 
was double the weight, and equally uniform in 
heading. This we find is becoming the favorite 
large early variety in almost every section of the 
country. It has only been introduced into general 
cultivation within the past four years, though it 
has been grown for nearly 20 years by one of our 
best Long Island farmers, who had a monopoly of 
it up to that time. Next in value, as a second early, 
comes the Winningstadt, a well known pyramidal¬ 
shaped variety of great solidity. Next in order 
came Early Flat Dutch, which, by middle of July, 
gave heads of 15 lbs. weight. For the fall crop, 
(seed sown in May,) nothing is found better than 
Premium Flat Dutch. A correspondent in Pennsyl¬ 
vania writes that a field of 5 acres averaged 14 lbs. 
per head. American Drumhead Savoy is best in 
its class. Of cabbages for pickling, we find the 
Blood Red Erfurt by far the best colored. 
Carrot .—French Forcing, earliest, and handsome, 
next Early Horn, and a newish sort called Half 
Long Red, of very bright color, and excellent flavor. 
For field crop, Improved Long Orange is best. 
Cauliflowers, (sown and planted at same dates as 
the cabbages.)—The new variety known as Early 
Snowball, is the best acquisition of the season. 
It was a week earlier than all other sorts tried; 
heads of fine size, of snowy whiteness, few and 
short leaves, making it in every way desirable, 
whether for growing under glass or in the open 
ground. Next to this was the Extra Early Erfurt, 
hitherto considered the best variety. Later, for 
succession, came Half Early Paris, and Le Nor- 
mand’s Short Stemmed, too late for early, but valu¬ 
able as a fall sort. 
Celerg .—Probably in no vegetable cultivated has 
the variety so much to do with success as Celery. 
Our own experience, and that of scores of our im¬ 
mediate neighbors, is that nearly all the giant or tall- 
growing kinds are unprofitable to raise. Not only 
does their culture entail twice the labor, but they 
are almost always wanting in solidity and in flavor. 
While some hundreds of acres of Celery are now 
grown for the market of New York, the kinds are 
mainly the Half Dwarf and Dwarf Sandringham, in 
the proportion of four of the first to one of the 
second. The Boston Market variety has never 
been a favorite for the New York Market, as its 
tendency to throw up suckers, or side shoots, con¬ 
sidered the merit of that variety in Boston, makes 
it objectionable here. Hood’s Dwarf Red is the 
best variety of Celery in cultivation, but the Ameri¬ 
can public, with few exceptions, will not use red 
Celery, while in England it is highly valued, as it 
should be, for it is not only much better flavored 
than the white sorts, but it keeps better, and surely, 
when used as an ornamental vegetable, as Celery 
often is, its bright crimson, and white color, make 
it more attractive than the white. 
Corn .—Minnesota we find to be the earliest variety 
of good size. The habit is dwarf, size of ear medium, 
very productive, and sweet.Large 8-rowed, 
second early, large size, sweet....New Egyptian, 
this variety is of large size; is about as early as 
8-rowed. The merit claimed for it is its excellent 
flavor. It has been but little grown outside of Bal¬ 
timore, but has been cultivated there for several 
years to the exclusion of nearly all the other sorts. 
_Stowell’s Evergreen for late main crop we find 
nothing yet to supersede this old and reliable kind. 
Cucumbers .—Early White Spine, and Green Pro¬ 
lific, were earliest and most prolific, while for 
pickling, Early Cluster and Short Green seem best. 
Egg Plant. —New York Improved is rather earliest, 
but Black Pekin is to our taste the best flavored— 
they are nearly alike productive. 
Endive .—Moss Curled,Green Curled,and Batavian. 
Lettuce, (sown and planted same date as cabbage.) 
—We find All the Year Round (one of the cabbage 
or Butter class) headed first. Next came the 
Simpson, and next for standing the hot weather 
best were Large White Summer, and Curled India. 
Boston Market, though rather small for out-door 
culture, is now almost exclusively growm as the 
best for heading under glass. 
Musli Melons .—White Japan proved earliest, but 
for general crop Nutmeg and Green Citron are 
preferable. Cassaba is a large yellow kind; is of 
excellent flavor, and very prolific. 
Onions .—Wethersfield Red, Yellow Danvers, and 
White Globe, are probably tlie^est of their colors, 
for general culture, though the newer kinds of the 
Italian varieties, such as White Tripoli, Queen, and 
Giant Rocca, grow finely in South and South-west¬ 
erly States. _ 
Parsnip .—Hollow Crowned. 
Parsley . — Moss Curled and Double Curled. 
Peas. —These, like Tomatoes, have so many new 
claimants for earliness and productiveness, that it 
is not easy to decide. Our tests of last season 
place them as follows, as near as we could judge : 
First, Improved Dan’l O’Rourke, next Philadelphia 
Extra Early, and Carter’s First Crop for round 
peas requiring brush. Of the Dwarfs, Little Gem 
and Blue Peter, while for larger growing wrinkled 
sorts, Alpha is best and earliest; while for main 
late crop nothing yet we find as good as Champion 
of England. 
Badishes .—Scarlet Turnip, Long Scarlet, and the 
new White Tipped Scarlet, (French seed,) are all 
about equally early. The last named is very dis¬ 
tinct and pretty, and in every way desirable. Of the 
late of winter Radishes, the China Rose Colored, 
Black, and White Spanish are all good. 
Spinach .—We find that the Savoy-leaved is by 
far the best, giving nearly twice the weight of crop 
on the same space. It is somewhat singular that 
the great value of this variety seems to have been 
overlooked by the market gardeners of New York, 
and they have only recently woke up to it on see¬ 
ing it sent in by the growers from Norfolk, Va., 
and other Southern points. 
Tomatoes . — Sown March 5tli,.were carefully trans¬ 
planted twice, and set out in open ground May 20th. 
This was the most puzzling trial we made, as it was 
difficult to impartially pick out 3 or 4 as the best 
among so many. Canada Victor was, by a majority 
of censors, judged the earliest and 
best, though Conqueror and New 
York Market resemble it, and they 
are evidently all nearly allied to 
each other. Arlington, a valuable 
variety, but little later, is exceed¬ 
ingly prolific, large, and smooth, 
and this and Excelsior are the fa¬ 
vorite varieties for canning. Tro¬ 
phy is late, but its other excellent 
qualities still leave it the field. 
Golden Trophy, a beautiful yellow 
variety, is in every way worthy of 
cultivation. The very early varie¬ 
ties, such as Little Gem, 100 Days, 
and Key’s Prolific, ripened a few 
fruit 10 days before those above 
named, but all these varieties are 
worthless for market purposes, be¬ 
cause the difference in carliuess of 
150 miles farther South, brings in 
the finer sorts, cheap enough to 
take their place until the better 
sorts ripen. I have but little hope 
in any farther improvement in 
earliness of the Tomato. We have 
made no advance on Key’s Pro¬ 
lific, sent out 7 or 8 years ago,and 
that earliness was at the expense 
of both size and quality, while in the good market 
sorts it is doubtful if there is anything much in 
advance of a good stock of New York Market, 
which has been in culture for 25 years. 
Turnip. —Red, and White-Top Strap-leaf are 
earliest. Purple White Globe is nearly as early, 
and will prove a more marketable sort from its 
larger size. Yellow Globe, for second early, is one 
of the best for general crop. In Buta Bagas, the 
American grown seed of the Purple and Green Top 
kinds proved better in every case than some half 
dozen kinds of imported varieties tried, with the 
exception of the Long White French, a variety of 
excellent flavor, and otherwise desirable. 
The Fern-Leaved Trumpet-Flower. 
Last spring, Mr. John Saul, of Washington, D. C., 
who has a way of sending out novelties at a very 
early date, sent us, among other new plants, a spe¬ 
cimen of Campsidium filicifolium —a good deal of a 
name for such a bit of a plant, as it was. We knew 
EARLY SNOWBALL CAULIFLOWER. 
