BK9il 
one year, and to bury it horizontally, roots and all, in 
the manner practised with branches. It is said, that 
being thus connected with the roots, the buds and 
plants which they produce, are not liable to be injur- 
ed by drought. 
The Farmers’ Garden. 
KITCHEN DEPARTMENT. 
In the enumeration of articles to be cultivated in 
the garden, for consumption in the family, other than 
the fruits we have spoken of, we shall notice those 
which are of most easy culture, suitable to our cli¬ 
mate, and of substantial use in household economy; 
and shall notice them in alphabetical order. 
1. Asparagus. This is one of the most valuable 
products of the garden, both on account of the little 
labor which it demands, and the rich and abundant 
returns it makes for the table, or for market: for af¬ 
ter a bed of it is once established, it is rendered pro¬ 
ductive for many years with but little labor. The 
ground should be dug deep, well manured and pulve¬ 
rized, and laid off in beds of four feet or more, with 
two feet alleys between them. It is preferable to 
trench the ground, and to throw in manure at the bot¬ 
tom of the trench. Sow the seeds thinly in drills a 
foot asunder, and two inches deep; and when the 
plants are well established, thin them to eight or 
twelve inches asunder. If plants are to be used,—and 
they are to be had at the nurseries at 50 to 75 cents 
the hundred,—gather from four to six inches of the 
earth from the top of the beds, into the alleys, place 
the plants at twelve inches distance each way, then 
cover them with the dirt taken from the surface. The 
asparagus from seed, if the soil and management are 
good, may be cut the third year; from transplanted 
roots generally the second year. The drier the bot¬ 
tom of the bed, the deeper may the planting be made. 
The beds should be kept free from weeds, and in au¬ 
tumn it is advisable to cover them with coarse dung, 
which should be taken off in the spring, and the sur¬ 
face well loosened with a fork. With care an aspa¬ 
ragus bed will last twenty years ; Cobbett says three 
generations. We are acquainted with but one vari¬ 
ety, and that is good enough. The seed may be 
sown in the spring—the plants put out then or in au¬ 
tumn. In our latitude asparagus is fit to cut from the 
15th to the 25th April; and the cutting may be con¬ 
tinued till the middle of June. 
2. Balm, is a perennial plant, purely medicinal. 
There are two varieties, the high and low. A few 
plants of each in the border are desirable. 
3. Basil is a sweet pot-herb, and is dried for win¬ 
ter use. It is an annual, and the seed should be 
sown in very fine earth. 
4. Beans. What are with us generally termed 
English beans ( Vica faba) are not much cultivated, not 
proving productive in our hot summers. They should 
be planted in April, where they will be most protected 
from heat, in rows four feet apart, and the plants four 
inches apart. Of the kidney, or common bean, there 
are a great many varieties, both of bush sorts and 
runners. The early sorts may be planted late in 
April or early in May, the general crop the 20th May, 
and even in July for pods to be preserved during win¬ 
ter. Of the runners, the Lima, horticultural and sieva 
(formerly called case knife beans) are the most esteem¬ 
ed. The Lima should be planted as early as the 
warmth of the soil will permit. Bush beans are ordi¬ 
narily planted in drills, two feet apart, or in single 
drills upon the edges of the plats or borders. The 
pole beans may be planted in hills, two and a half to 
three feet each way. Beans not only serve a valua¬ 
ble purpose as food in the summer, but are useful in 
winter, either after they have ripened, or when ga¬ 
thered green, and pickled in the pod, or dried in the 
berry. This is particularly the case with the Lima, 
when shelled green and dried. Most sorts of the 
bean like a light, dry, but rich soil. 
5. Beets. Though not generally raised by farm¬ 
ers, the beet is a valuable root for the table, and for 
all kinds of farm stock. Their nutritive properties 
are indicated by the sugar they afford—their profita¬ 
ble culture by the great product which they yield. 
This is one of the good things of which there is no 
danger of having too much ; and yet a rod of ground 
will supply a family. Sow the turnip rooted for early 
use, and the blood variety for winter. The beet is 
sown in drills, at least a foot apart, and the plants 
should be thinned to six inches. Great size is not de¬ 
sirable, as those of medium growth are found to be 
preferable for flavor and nutritive properties. Har¬ 
vest the beet as soon as it has done growing, as it de¬ 
teriorates, if suffered to stand longer in the ground. 
It is a good practice to steep the seed in tepid water, 
for 24 to 48 hours before it is deposited in the ground, 
an l to press the earth upon it afterwards. 
In preserving beets, and most other roots, for win¬ 
ter use, they should be kept from heat and too much 
air. After they are freed from external moisture, 
they should either be secured in pits, or packed, or at 
least covered, in the cellar with dry earth or sand. 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
6. Brocoli is but little cultivated, though it is a 
delicious vegetable. It belongs to the cabbage fa¬ 
mily, and is managed like it. The head is boiled and 
eaten like the cabbage. There is a white and a red, 
the latter the most certain crop. It comes to maturity 
for eating about as soon as cabbage, and may be 
sown very early, for early use, and the last of May 
for autumn use. 
7. Bene. This is highly esteemed, not only for the 
oil which is afforded by its seeds, but as beneficial 
in allaying local inflammation, particularly of chil¬ 
dren, in the bowel or summer complaint. A leaf of 
this plant immersed in a tumbler of water, transforms 
the liquid into a thin jelly, inodorous, and without 
taste or colour, which children will drink freely. 
8. Cabbage. Although this is a common garden 
production, very little attention is given to varieties, 
or to a succession for the table; and size is regarded 
rather than quality. Cabbages may be in use ten or 
eleven months in the year. The early sorts, if the 
plants are reared in a hot-bed, may be fit to eat in 
July, and Savoys keep good till May. Every farmer 
understands the culture of this plant; but few have 
experienced the advantages of transplanting them 
twice, i. e. first from the seed bed where they are gene¬ 
rally crowded, and have crooked stems, into a bed of 
rich mould, at four to six inches apart, which is term¬ 
ed pricking out; and secondly, when they have there 
become thrifty, and of good size, into the place where 
they are to head. A hundred may be pricked out 
with a dibble in a few moments, and the plants are 
rendered doubly valuable by it. The dibble is a sharp 
pointed stick, with which a hole is made for the plant, 
and, when it is inserted in it, the earth is pressed to 
the root. The Savoy is the most delicate, and keeps 
best for late spring use. Cabbages keep well during 
winter in a trench, the heads down close together, 
and roots even with the surface, covered merely with 
earth; but they should be thus buried in a dry soil, 
and as late as possible before winter sets in. Cob¬ 
bett recommends, as the best mode of preserving cab¬ 
bages in winter, as follows: 
“ Lay out a piece of ground four feet wide, and as 
long as is required for your cabbages. Dig on each 
side of it a little trench, a foot deep, and throw the earth 
upon the four feet bed. Make the top of the bed level 
and smooth. Lay some poles, or old rails, at a foot 
apart, long-ways, upon the bed. Then put some smaller 
poles, or stout sticks, crossways, upon the rails or 
poles, and put these last at five or six inches apart. 
Upon these lay corn-stalks, or broomcorn-stalks, or 
brush of trees, not very thick, but sufficiently thick to 
cover all over. Then, just as the frost is about to 
lock up the earth, take up the cabbages, knock all dirt 
out of their roots, take off all dead or yellow looking 
leaves, and some of the outside leaves besides; put the 
cabbages, head downwards, upon the bed, their roots 
sticking up; and cover them so thick with straw as for 
the straw to come up nearly to the root of the cabbage. 
Do not pack them quite close. It is better if they do 
not touch eaoh other. Lay some bits of wood, or brush¬ 
wood, to prevent the straw from blowing off. If the 
frost catch you, before you have got the cabbages up, 
cut them oft' close to the ground, and let the stumps, in¬ 
stead of the roots, stick up through the straw. Out of 
this stack you will take your cabbages perfectly green 
and good in the spring, when the frost breaks up; and 
to this stack you can, at all times, go, in the winter, 
with the greatest facility, and get your cabbages for 
use, which you can to no other species of conservatory 
that I ever saw or heard of. The hollow part below 
the cabbages takes away all wet that may come from 
occasional rains or melting of snows, and the little 
ditches on the sides of the bed keep the bed itself free 
from being soaked with wet. Even if deep snows come 
and lie for months, as in Nova Scotia, New-Brunswick 
and Canada, it is only removing the snow a little, and 
here are the cabbages always fresh and good.” 
We have no doubt of the utility of this mode ; and 
to those who raise cabbages for winter and spring 
market, when the price is always high, Cobbett’s di¬ 
rections are particularly worthy of attention. 
9. Kale, is of the cabbage family, the leaves 
and sprouts of which are boiled in winter and spring 
as greens. There are several kinds, none of which 
that we have seen stand well our northern winters, 
which is required to have them useful. We have 
not seen the Siberian, recommended by Mr. Garnet. 
We might presume, from its name, that it would prove 
hardy with us. 
10. Kale (Sea) has been highly extolled as a sub¬ 
stitute for asparagus, and as coming earlier in use 
than that plant. We have tried it, but can say no¬ 
thing in its favor, except it requires more labor than 
it is worth. 
11. Camomile is a medicinal herb of great use. 
There is a single and double flowering variety. It 
stands our winters tolerably well. A small root will 
increase to a bed in a season. The flowers should be 
gathered ere they begin to fade. The stems, gather¬ 
ed and dried, possess in a great measure the virtues 
of the flower. 
12. Capsicums, (peppers)—The large squash vari¬ 
ety is used for pickles, the small bird kind for sauce. 
The seed should be sown early in fine earth. Where 
there is a hot-bed, it is well to sow in this. Thin the 
plants to eight inches. 
13. Carrot. This, like the beet, is never lost to 
the grower; as it is readily eaten by most do¬ 
mestic animals; and is deemed equal to oats for 
horses. Sow in drills, in May, one foot apart, press 
the earth upon the sown seed, and thin the plants to 
five or six inches. The Altringhan and orange vari¬ 
eties are the best. CT The ground for all tap-rooted 
vegetables should be dug deep. A top-dressing of 
ashes is excellent for the carrot. 
14. Cauliflower. Although this plant is consi¬ 
dered a delicacy, resembling much the brocoli, yet 
it is seldom brought to perfection with ordinary care. 
The French call it the flowering cabbage; and it may 
be managed like the cabbage, except that it demands 
much moisture and a rich soil. 
15. Celery is yet very little cultivated in the farm¬ 
er’s garden. Fifty plants will suffice for an ordinary 
family, and theBe may be raised in a trench of twenty- 
five feet. The seed should be sown early, if in a hot¬ 
bed the better, and the plants pricked out, as direct¬ 
ed for cabbage. In J uly dig a trench a foot deep and 
a foot wide. Lay the earth upon the sides, or if more 
than one trench is dug, between the trenches, which 
should be five feet apart. Put into the trench rotted 
dung, or compost, dig it in, and set out your plants, 
six inches apart. As the plants progress in growth, 
draw the earth from the sides to the stems, taking 
care not to cover the heart, or central shoots; and 
continue this earthing, once in a week or ten days, 
till late in autumn, using as you have occasion. If 
covered so as to exclude wet, celery may be kept in 
the ground all winter; but the common mode is to 
preserve it in the cellar, by packing the roots in dry 
earth, or planting them in a trench. Some persons, 
who esteem the roots, plant on the surface of the 
ground, and do not earth the plants till they are re¬ 
moved to the cellar for winter use. These keep much 
the best. 
16. Chives, often called sives, are perennial, and 
are often employed as edgings to walks. The tops 
are used in the spring in salads. 
17. Corn. Early varieties, and particularly sweet 
corn, may be planted in the garden, for table use. 
Sweet corn may be preserved, when full grown, for 
winter use, and with dried beans, can be made into 
succotash at all seasons. Pick the corn when full 
grown, husk and place the ears in an oven, heat mo¬ 
derately ; then take the corn from the cob, finish the 
drying process in the sun or an airy room, and pack 
it away for use. It will keep years. 
18. Cress, or pepper-grass, is a grateful salad, 
alone or with lettuce. Sow in drills very thick, and 
cut before it comes into rough leaf. 
19. Cucumber. For an early crop, where a hot-bed 
is not used, dig holes in a warm part of the garden, put 
into each, half a barrow full of hot unfermented stable 
dung; cover the dung with six inches of good mould, 
and plant your seeds. Small boxes, with two to four 
lights of glass, are advantageously used to protect cu¬ 
cumbers and melons in May and June, both from cold 
and insects; and when once prepared may be pre¬ 
served for years. The main crop, for pickles, &c. 
may be planted the first week in June. 
20. Dandelion, although considered a pest, affords 
one of the earliest and best greens. It is cultivated 
in many gardens for this use. It may be slightly co¬ 
vered with earth in autumn, and in this way it becomes 
finely bleached. The French esteem it as a salad. 
21. Dock. The species called Patience Dock, of 
early growth and broad leaf, is often cultivated as a 
green. Six feet square upon a warm border will af¬ 
ford a great supply. 
22. Egg plant. The fruit of this plant is highly 
esteemed by many. The seed should be sown early, 
if in pots in a hot-bed the better, and transplanted 
early in June into the open ground. Put the plants 
two feet apart each way. Care must be taken to 
protect the young plants from the black flea. 
23. Endive is principally cultivated as a winter 
salad. Sow early for summer crop, and the middle 
of July for winter use. To bleach endive, which adds 
to its value, gather all the leaves up with your hand i 
when they are dry, draw them into a conical form, i 
and tie them round with matting or a soft string. 
When they have remained in this state about a fort- ■ 
night, they will be bleached and fit for use. The ; 
curled sort is the handsomest, the plain the besL For i 
winter or spring use, the plants are taken up in the : 
fall, with balls of earth, and placed in light earth in a : 
cellar. 
24. Garlick, although seldom used as food by i 
Americans, is nevertheless often in demand for medi- ■ 
cinal uses. It is perennial and hardy. A few cloves ■ 
or roots will occupy but a foot of ground and may . 
prove serviceable.__ 
Dairy Management in Scotland. 
We have before us the report of the committee of > 
the Highland Society of Scotland, by whom premiums 
