chap, vi.] THE KITCHEN-GARDEN. 151 
Tart Rhubarb .—The part of the rhubarb 
used for making pies and puddings is the 
footstalk of the leaf; and the kinds usually 
grown in gardens for this purpose are Rheum 
Rhaponticum, a native of Asia introduced in 
1573, and Rheum Undulatum, a native of 
China introduced in 1734. Rheum Palma - 
turn, the leaves of which are very deeply cut 
with pointed segments, is generally supposed 
to be the kind, the root of which is used in 
medicine, under the name of Turkey Rhu¬ 
barb. Buck’s Elford, or Scarlet Rhubarb, 
has slender stalks, but is valuable for its 
beautiful colour; and the Tobolsk, the Giant, 
and the Victoria Rhubarb, are remarkable 
for the enormous size of their stalks. Rheum 
Australe, which is by some said to be the 
medicinal kind, and which is only lately in¬ 
troduced, has also enormous leaves, and very 
long thick stalks, the skin of which is rough, 
while the pulp tastes like that of apples. 
Rhubarb is either raised from seed, or pro¬ 
pagated by offsets, or dividing the crown of 
the root. The seed is sown in April, in 
light rich soil, and the plants are pricked out 
in autumn into a bed of rich sandy loam 
