KITCHEN GARDENING UNDER JAMES I. 
123 
the sisarum or siser “ of the ancients,” as it agreed with the 
description given by Dioscorides, “ who saith it is * pleasant to 
the pallate/ and he sheweth plainely that it hath a nerve or 
string in the roote which is to be taken away after boyling, 
that the rest may be eaten with the more pleasure, and such 
hath this skirret and no other roote that either then was or 
now is edible.” Some of Parkinson's contemporaries disagreed, 
and thought the parsnip was the true siser, and the matter is 
still undecided. The native place of the plant is also doubtful, 
though probably China. Another theory is that it came from 
Siberia, and through Germany became known to the ancients. 
It was grown in England in Tudor times, and does not appear 
to have been of recent introduction. The word “ Skirret ” 
means the same as the Danish name of the plant sokeret, or 
sugar root. 1 
Both the ordinary artichoke ( Cynara Scolymus) and the 
cardoon ( Cynara Cardunculus) were grown, but the latter were 
never as popular in England as they were abroad, probably 
because “ we cannot yet find the true manner of dressing them, 
that our country may take delight therein.” 2 The artichokes 
grown in England were considered the best, and plants were 
exported to Italy, France, and the Low Countries. 
Greater attention was paid to the culture of melons. All 
gardening books give instructions for growing them, apparently 
without great success, for Parkinson is honest enough to say : 
“ Muske melons have been begun to be nursed up, but of late 
dayes in this Land, wherin although many have tried and en¬ 
deavoured to bring them to perfection, yet few have attained 
unto it.” The seeds were planted in April, in a hotbed, and 
carefully covered with straw; when they had sprung up they 
were given an hour's sun in the morning, and re-covered, then, 
when they had “ gotten four leaves,” are planted on a well- 
manured sloping bank in a sunny sheltered place, and covered 
with a pot, or some shelter, until they were well grown. Sir 
Hugh Platt writes : “ When your mellons are as big as Tennis 
balls, then if you nip off at a joynt, all the shoots that are 
1 De Candolle, Origin of Cultivated Plants. 
2 Parkinson. “ 1 oz. of Cardone ” seed in 1761 cost is. (MSS. 
Household Accounts, Stonor). 
