j5o BRAS 
their wliitenefs; and, when they are full grown, obferve 
the former directions in pulling them, &c. but wherever 
you meet with an extraordinary good cauliflower, whofe 
curd is hard and white, and perfectly free from any frothi- 
nefs about the edges, you fliould fuffer it to remain for 
feed, keeping the leaves clofe down upon it until the 
flower has (hot out ftems, and then remove the leaves 
from it by degrees, but do not expofe it too much to the 
open air at firfl. As the flems advance, you muff take the 
leaves quite away; and, when they begin to branch out, 
you fliould fix three pretty flrong flakes, at equal angles, 
about it, furrounding them with packthread, &c. to fup- 
port the branches, which would be otherwife liable to 
breakWith the wind. When your pods begin firfl to be 
formed, if the weather proves dry, you fliould give them 
a little water all over, with a watering-pot that has a rofe 
to it ; which will promote the progrefs of the feeds, and 
preferve them from mildew, w hich is often hurtful ro the 
feeds ; and, when your feeds are ripe, you mu ft cut it oft', 
and hang it up to dry, and rub it out as was directed tor 
cabbage-feed: and, although your flowers do not produce 
fo much feed as thofe which were of a fofter or frothy na¬ 
ture, yet the goodnefs of. (rich feeds will fufficienlly re- 
compenfe for the quantity ; and any perfon who was to 
purchafe his feeds, had better give ten (hillings an ounce 
for fucli feed, than two for the feeds commonly faved for 
tale, as the gardeners about London have experienced, 
w ho will never buy any (eeds of this kind, if they do not 
know how they were faved. 
But, in order to have a third crop of cauliflowers, you 
fliould make a (lender hot-bed in February, in which you 
fliould fow the feeds, covering them a quarter of an inch 
thick with light mould, and covering the bed with glafs 
frames : you fliould now and then gently refrefli the bed 
with water, obferving to raife the glades with bricks, or 
props in the day-time, to let in frefli air; and, when the 
plant* are come up, and have gotten four or five leaves, 
you fliould prepare another hot-bed to prick them into, 
at the diftance of about two inches every way; and in the 
beginning of April harden them by degrees, to fit them 
for tranfplanting, which (hould be done the middle of that 
month, at the diftance directed for the fecond crop, and 
muft be managed accordingly : thefe (if the foil be moifl: 
where they are planted, or the feafon cool and moifl) will 
roduce good cauliflowers about a month after the fecond 
crop is gone, whereby their feafon will be greatly pro¬ 
longed. There is alfo a fourth crop of cauliflowers, which 
is railed by flowing the feed about the 23d of May ; and 
being traiifplanted, as has been before directed, will pro¬ 
duce good cauliflowers, in a kindly feafon and good foil, 
after Michaelmas, and continue through October and No¬ 
vember ; and, if the feafon permit, often a great part of 
Decembe.r. 
The reafon why we here fix particular days for the 
flowing of this feed, is becaufe two or three days often 
make a great difference in their plants; and becaufe thefe 
are the days ufually fixed by the gardeners near London, 
who have found the crops to fucceed beft when flown at 
thofe times ; although one day, more or lefs, will make 
no great odds. 
The feeds of the broccoli, of which there are feveraf 
kinds, viz. the Roman, or purple, and the Neapolitan, or 
white, and the black broccoli, with fome others, (but the 
Roman is generally preferred to them all,) fliould be town 
about the latter end of May, or beginning of June, in a 
moifl foil ; and, when the plants are grown to have eight 
leaves, tranfplant them into beds, as was directed for the 
common cabbage; and towards the middle of July they 
will be fit to plant out finally, which fliould be into 
fome well flickered fpot of ground, but not under the drip 
of trees: the diftance thefe require is a foot and a half in 
the rows, and two feet row from row. The foil in which 
they fliould be planted ought to be rather light than heavy, 
(licit as are the kitchen-gardens near London: if your 
plants fucceed well (as there will be little reafon to doubt, 
SICA. 
unl-efs the winter prove extremely fevere), they wi ! begin 
to lhow their (mail heads, which are fumewhat like a cau¬ 
liflower, but o! a purple colour, about the end of Decem¬ 
ber, and will continue eatable till the middle of April. 
1 he brown or black broccoli is by many perfons greatly 
efteemed, though it does not deferve a place in the kitchen- 
garden, where the Ruman broccoli can be obtained, which 
is much Tweeter, and will continue longer in feafon : in¬ 
deed, the brown fort is much hardier, fo that it will thrive 
in the coldeft fituations, where tiie Roman broccoli is 
fometimes deftroyed in very hard winters. The brown 
fort thoitld be town in' the middle of May, and managed 
as has been direded for the common cabbage, and fhould 
be planted at the fame diftance, which is about two feet 
and a half afunder. This will grow very tall, and fliould 
have the earth drawn up to the flems as it advances, in 
height. T. his does not form heads fo perfeCl ais the Roman 
broccoli; the (terns and hearts of the plants are the parts 
which are eaten. 
The Roman broccoli (if well managed) will have large 
heads, which appear in the center of rhe plants like drif¬ 
ters of buds. Thefe heads fliould be cut before they run 
up to feed, with about four or five inches of the ftem ; the 
(kin of thefe flems fliould be dripped off before they are 
boiled ; thefe will be very tender, and little inferior ta 
afparagus. After the firfl: heads aid cut off, there will be 
a great number of fide (boots produced from the ftems, 
which will have fmall heads to them, but are full as well 
flavoured as the large. Thefe (hoots will continue good 
until the middle of April, when the afparagus will come 
in plenty to fupply the table. 
1 he Naples broccoli has white heads, very like thofe 
of tlie cauliflower, and eats fo like it as not to be diftin- 
guifhed from it. This, being much tenderer than the Ro¬ 
man broccoli, is not fo much cultivated in England ; for, 
as the gardens near London generally produce great plen¬ 
ty of late cauliflowers, which, if the feafon prove favour¬ 
able, will continue till Chriftmas, the Naples broccoli, 
coming at the fame time, is not fo valuable. 
Belides this firfl crop of broccoli (which is ufually fowu 
the end ot May), it will be proper to fow* another crop 
the beginning of July, which will came in to fupply the 
table the latter end of March and the beginning of April, 
and being very young will be extremely tender and fweet. 
In order to fave good feeds of this kind of broccoli in 
England, you fliould referve a few of the largeft heads of 
the firfl: crop, which fliould be let remain to run up to 
feed, and all the under flioots fliould be conftantly ftripped 
off, leaving only the main ftem to flower and feed. If this 
be duly obferved, and no other fort of cabbage permitted 
to feed near them, the feeds will be as good as thofe pro¬ 
cured from abroad, and the fort may be preferved in per¬ 
fection many years. 
The manner of preparing the Naples broccoli for the 
table is this: when your heads are grown to their full 
bignefs, (as may be ealily known by their dividing, and 
beginning to run up,) then you fliould cut them off, with 
about four inches of the tender ftem to them ; then ftrip- 
off the outer (kin of the ftem, and, after having walked 
them, boil them in a clean linen cloth, as is praitifed for 
cauliflowers ; and, if they are of a right kind, they will 
be tenderer than any cauliflowers, though very like them 
in tafte. The white or Neapolitan broccoli may alfo be 
fovvn in the beginning or middle of February, upon a wall 
border having an eaftern afpecl. So foon as the plants 
have got five leaves, tranfplant them into a more fouth- 
erly alpeCl, upon a very good rich foil, where they may 
remain. The reafon of this tranfplanting is, that they may 
thereby acquire more fibres, whereby they fuck more nou- 
rifhment Irom the foil, than thofe plants which are con¬ 
tinued in their feed-beds: for by every tranfplantation 
they acquire a new fet of fibres, and of confequence, if 
they are twice or thrice traiifplanted in nurfery-beds, they 
are much better in their productions than plants of the 
fame kind, which have not been traiifplanted. 
In 
