THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
733 
1895 
WHAT AB0U7 SAVOt CABBAGES? 
It is claimed that Savoy cabbages are richer and of finer 
quality than the plain-leaf sorts. Are they ? Do they head as 
freely ? Do they keep as well ? Do they bring more in the mar¬ 
ket ? Which is preferable—early or late ? 
Better Flavor, But Poorer Headers. 
1 have never known this statement to be questioned. 
The consensus of opinion has always been in favor of 
Savoys for quality. If they do head as freely, I never 
knew it. With a good strain of Flat Dutch, I expect 
95 percent to become marketable heads ; other things 
being equal, 65 per cent of Savoys, is as good as I 
have been able to obtain. If I wished to grow Savoy 
cabbage, I would select a few choice heads, and build 
up a strain more reliable for heading than anything I 
have been able to buy. They do not keep so well for 
me. They are richer, more tender ; the worms soon 
discover this. Then the fun begins. Do they bring 
more in the market ? That depends. If a man is 
growing for a critical retail trade, and sells his own 
products to customers who can appreciate quality, 
can keep his stock free from the depredations of the 
green worm to please the customers to whom he 
caters, he may be able to sell a few for more money. 
Pennsylvania. m. garrahan. 
Takes a Frost to Bring out Quality. 
For several years before engaging in horticultural 
work at the Geneva, N. Y., Experiment Station, my 
crop consisted of from 40,000 to 60,000 heads each 
year, a limited amount of which were of the Savoy 
varieties. While at the Geneva Station, every variety 
of cabbage that could be obtained was grown for 
study and testing. There is no question in my mind 
that the Savoy cabbages are richer and of finer 
quality than the plain-leaf sorts. The Savoys have 
the sweet, rich, delicate flavor so characteristic of a 
fine cauliflower. In my judgment, all kinds of cab¬ 
bage are greatly improved in quality after they have 
been exposed to several heavy frosts in autumn, and I 
do not care to eat any of the plain-leaf varieties until 
after that time on account of their sharp and rank 
flavor; while I am very fond of the Savoys at any time 
during the season. In my experience, they have always 
headed as freely as the plain-leaf sorts when grown 
under the same conditions. I never could see any 
difference in the keeping qualities of the Savoy and 
other sorts, although I seldom kept many of them 
through the winter on account of the great demand 
for them in the early fall and winter at higher prices 
than the plain-leaf varieties. As to the Savoys bring¬ 
ing a higher price, much depends upon the markets. 
If the market be largely patronized by Irish people, 
there will be little or no demand for Savoys, as they 
prefer the larger and coarser varieties ; while the 
Jews, Germans and Scotch prefer Savoys. Much de¬ 
pends upon the purpose for which the Savoys are 
grown whether the early or late varieties are prefer¬ 
able. If grown only for family or home use, by all 
means grow both. For market purposes the demand 
with me was for medium early and late varieties. 
Delaware Experiment Station. m. h. Beckwith. 
How to Keep Savoys. 
The flavor of a Savoy cabbage is much more delicate 
than that of the other varieties, being of a marrow 
character, and after two or three good frosts, remind¬ 
ing one very much of the flavor of cauliflower. The 
Savoys, as a rule, do not make a large, heavy head 
marketable for slaw, but quite firm enough for all 
purposes, and I have usually found them to head 
above the average of other sorts. They are very 
good keepers. My favorite method of keeping Savoys 
is, when cold weather sets in, to bury them root down 
up to the first leaves, closely together three or four 
abreast in a trench, and make a double pitched roof 
of corn fodder over them. With this treatment, 
they perfect themselves more and more, both in 
quality and flavor, until consumed. Before they are 
set in the trench, the heads should be inverted for 
some time so as to drain thoroughly. They do not 
bring so much in market as other sorts, because 
the heads are neither so large nor so showy as the 
other varieties. The late Savoy will usually be most 
satisfactory, because it requires frost to ripen it prop¬ 
erly, and it grows better at a lower temperature 
which is obtained for the late crop, rather than an 
earlier one. I have generally found Savoys less sub¬ 
ject to cabbage worms than other sorts. p. r. 
North Carolina. 
Three Brief Opinions. 
I consider the Savoys of better quality in every 
respect. With us, they head as freely as any, and 
keep as well, if not better. In the better class of 
markets, they will bring higher prices. I find little 
difference in varieties as regards earliness. 
Long Island. c. l. allen. 
It is a difference of opinion which has never been 
settled as to whether Savoy cabbages are richer and 
of finer flavor than the plain-leaf sorts, some people 
preferring them, while others do not care for them 
at all. The Savoys will not head nearly so well as 
the other sorts, neither will they keep well when 
stored for winter ; for the latter reason we would 
prefer them early. w. atlee burpee. 
Pennsylvania. 
Savoy cabbages are sweeter, richer and finer- 
grained than the common sorts. The Marvin’s Savoy 
heads freely, and forms large heads, though there is 
a large amount of loose heads. I have never kept 
any, so have had no experience ; but I see no reason 
why they should not keep well. I took some to mar¬ 
ket when it was glutted with common cabbages, and 
sold Savoys readily at fair prices. J. a. 
Westport, Conn. 
A GARDEN UNDER GLASS. 
Part II. 
How It is Cultivated. 
Much thought should be expended on the fuel stor¬ 
age and the location of the greenhouse furnace, for 
this is the heart of the greenhouse. If the houses are 
situated on a side-hill, or on high ground, the boiler 
pit may be excavated to a depth sufficient to allow the 
w 'i' 
OUTSIDE APPEARANCE OF A GREENHOUSE. Fid. 230. □ 
cooler water or condensed steam to return by natural 
flow, which is, of course, the cheapest and best way. 
But I know of some very large and successful plants 
in which, owing to water in the soil preventing their 
excavation, condensed steam is returned to the boilers 
by means of a heavy trap. Of course the ideal fuel 
for greenhouses is natural gas or crude petroleum, so 
far as feeding is concerned ; for by the simple turn¬ 
ing of a valve, the fire is on or off, as occasion demands. 
But for most of us who have to handle the bulky 
fuels like coal, coke or wood, it is the part of wisdom 
in planning a plant, to arrange for the least possible 
handling between the source of supply and the fur¬ 
nace door. The furnace door is the place for economy; 
at the same time, a wise liberality must prevail, and 
the temperature must be gauged by the weather, and 
the state of the crops, and not by the state of the coal 
pile. We find that firing is oftenest attended to by 
the proprietors themselves, as so much depends on it; 
next to labor, it is the largest expense connected with 
the greenhouse. 
Next to fire, comes water. The old-fashioned plan 
was to have a lot of shallow cisterns located in con¬ 
venient places, under the beds and paths, from which 
the water was dipped and applied with large water¬ 
ing pots ; a very laborious and backaching job, but 
having the advantage of warm and soft water. Out¬ 
side of the city water mains, the hot-air pumping 
engines, or, in many places, windmills and reservoirs 
furnish the modern water supply. The main idea is 
water and lots of it, all the time ; and the larger the 
hose, and the finer and gentler the spray, the better. 
The first cost is more, but it is a great advantage to 
have the water piping in both aisles, and also con¬ 
nected directly with the boiler and washing trough. 
As I said last week, use plenty of hydrants and short 
hose. Another point, when the houses are in use the 
entire season, the water pipes are just as well on the 
surface, and a great deal more convenient to get at 
when changes are necessary. 
At Figs. 230 and 231 are the diagrams of our green¬ 
houses and their interior arrangements. We build our 
middle beds solid from the ground up, of either plank 
or brick, tied together every six feet with half inch 
brace rods. In filling these solid beds, we use first a 
fo®t or so of cobble stones, then coarse sand or gravel 
to within a foot of the surface, filling the rest with 
manure and garden soil as usual. The side beds are 
on benches, and underneath them we carry all our 
lower runs of steam pipe, water pipe, etc. Where 
there is space under the beds, asparagus, pie plant, 
mushrooms and even parsley and spearmint may be 
forced in favorable spots. We find that our deep beds 
hold their crops up a little better, and that our side 
beds are a little quicker in starting and a little more 
likely to have their crops drawn up and get seedy. 
Seven feet for the center beds, and 3% for the side 
beds, are the most convenient widths for work. A 
little attention will show m which location the dif¬ 
ferent crops do best. The seedlings need a hot start, 
and a. cool, but not damp place for the first trans¬ 
planting ; perhaps it is better, if a little poor, as they 
root stronger with less growth of top. Right here 
arises the question as to whether you will run the 
house for a crop to strip off and plant again, or for a 
continuous, daily supply, for there is a great deal of 
difference in the arrangements of details. The crop 
system is a sort of farming, and very much simpler 
than gardening under glass. For the first one knows 
in advance the date of probable shipment—Thanks¬ 
giving, Christmas, New Year, etc., as the case may 
be, and the seed is sown and the plants set accord¬ 
ingly. Knowing when the crop comes off, one has 
the plants ready and the labor is concentrated on the 
job ; the houses are set at once, and everything goes 
on like clock work. If one could be assured of a mar¬ 
ket when the crop is ready, this way would be prefer¬ 
able. But the market is not always ready with the 
crop, and then the result is likely to be very unsatis¬ 
factory. The arrangement for a daily load is a good 
deal of a puzzle, as the demand varies from day to 
day. While the demand and the growth of the crop 
usually keep pretty well together, dependent alike on 
the amount of sunshine, still there is variation enough 
to keep the ambitious gardener in a continual pickle, 
either for fear of running out or of overstock. 
Of the crops we have tried, lettuce and parsley and 
a few turnip radishes for winter, were the most sat¬ 
isfactory. Spinach, onions, cucumbers and tomatoes, 
though salable, were unprofitable. For spring and 
summer, cucumbers and egg plants are all that have 
showed a profit, and the profit on them depends 
largely on the season. It the season be such that the 
outdoor crops are large, there is nothing in them ; 
but when the frosts and cold winds prevail, or the 
long summer drought burns everything up, then the 
figures are on the right side of the ledger. On a gar¬ 
den of any size, it takes at least one greenhouse for 
the three spring months to raise the plants required 
for outdoor use, such as cabbages, cauliflowers, toma¬ 
toes, peppei’s, and egg plants. Cucumbers, melons, 
squashes, etc., may be started to advantage on sods 
or in small pots. 
To me, the greenhouse is the crown and finish of 
the garden. There the mind of man is enabled to 
grapple and hold Nature in check, when in her fierce 
and angry moods, she would destroy and blast every 
green thing from off the earth. What a pleasure it is, 
after a morning’s marketing, facing the bitter wintry 
gale, to step into the greenhouse, and feel the summer 
atmosphere, and note the fresh, green growth ; it is 
bringing the Southland to one’s own door. For the 
garden lover, what more could be asked ? We can 
live in the soil the year around The question is often 
asked, how does raising vegetables compare with 
flowers under glass? With no experience regarding 
flowers of my own, I can only say this, that while I 
have known many vegetable growers to turn to 
florists, I have never known florists to turn to vege¬ 
table growers. w. ir. woodiiams. 
BUSINESS BITS. 
A valuable little hand book for stock feeders will be sent free by 
the Smalley Mfg. Co., Manitowoc, Wis., if you mention The R. 
N.-Y. This firm is an old established and reliable one, and you 
can depend upon what it tells you or sells you. 
That farm advertised by A. Farmer, 866 Hancock Street, Brook¬ 
lyn, N. Y., is right in one of the best locations imaginable for 
peach growing or for a country residence. It can be divided into 
two farms if desired. So close to New York, too ! 
Did you notice that picture on page 739 that conveys the idea 
that eggs are nearly out of reach ? Of course they’re high ! 
Now, and during the next two or three months, is the time to sell 
them. Haven’t any to sell ? Then send a postal card to Bradley 
Fertilizer Co., Boston, Mass., for copy of Feeding for Eggs. It’ll 
tell you how to have some. 
Theke is much difference in the quality and purity of burning 
oil, the purer oil giving greater safety and better and steadier 
light. The Derrick Oil Company, Titusville, Pa., make a pure oil 
especially for family use; also a galvanized tank, which they 
ship by freight direct to consumers. They will send you full 
description of oil and tank if you ask for it. 
Bones are of no earthly use for feeding hens—unless they are 
ground or cut so that the hens can swallow them. Of course, you 
knew that before; but perhaps you didn’t know that Wilson Bros., 
Easton, Pa., will sell you a mill for putting any kind of bones 
green or dry, into shape for the hens. They’ll tell you all about 
their mills if you tell them that The R. N.-Y. sent you there. 
