C Y N A R A. 
517 
plant them at two feet diftance from each other in the 
rows, arid if deligned for a full crop, five teet diftance 
row from row ; your plants inuft be fet about four 
inches deep, and the earth clofed very faft to their roots, 
obferving, if the feafon proves dry, to keep them water¬ 
ed two or three times a-week, until they are growing, 
after which they feldom require any. Thefe plants, in a 
kindly feafon, or a moift foil, will produce the largeft 
and beft articliokes fome time in Auguft and September, 
after all thofe from the old (locks are pall ; fo that if 
you intend to continue your artichokes through the 
whole feafon, you mull make a new plantation every 
year, otherwife you cannot poftibly have fruit longer 
than two or three months. If any of the plants which 
are planted in the fpring fliould not fruit in autumn, 
you may, at the feafon of earthing up your roots, tic up 
the leaves with a (mall willow twig, &c. and lay the 
earth up clofe to it, fo that the top of the plant may be 
above groijnd ; and when the fro ft comes on, if you will 
cover the top with a little draw or peafe-haulm, to pre¬ 
vent their being killed by fro ft, thefe plants will produce 
fruit in winter, or early in tire fpring. 
But in thofe plantations where you intend to plant 
other things between your artichokes, you mu ft allow 
nine or ten feet between the rows, as is often pradlifed 
by the kitchen-gardeners near London, who fow the 
ground between with radifhes or fpinach, and plant two 
rows of cauliflowers, at four feet diftance row from row, 
and two feet and a half afunder in the rows, fo that there 
are always five feet allowed for the artichokes to grow ; 
and in May, when the radifhes or fpinach are taken oft, 
they fow a row of cucumbers for pickling, exactly be¬ 
tween the two rows of cauliflowers, at three feet diftance 
from each other; and between the rows of cauliflowers 
and the artichokes, plant a row of cabbages or favoys for 
winter ufe, which, when the cauliflowers are drawn off", 
and the artichokes gathered, will have full liberty to 
grow, and by this means the ground is lully employed 
through the whole feafon. This has long been the prac¬ 
tice of the kitchen-gardeners near London, who pay 
large rents for their land, fo are obliged to get as many 
crops in a year from it as poflible. 
Thofe artichokes which are planted in a moift rich 
foil, will always produce the largeft and beft fruit; fo 
that where fuch a foil can be obtained, it will be proper 
to make a frefh plantation every fpring, to fucceed the 
old (locks, and lupply the table in autumn. But the 
roots will not live through the winter in a moift foil, fo 
that your (locks which you intend (hould remain to fup- 
ply the table early, and to furnifh plants, ihould be in a 
drier foil. You (hould always obferve to plant thefe in 
an open fituation, and not under the drip of trees, where 
they will drhw up very tall, and produce fmall infignifi- 
cant fruit. 
Since we have experienced that, in very fevere frofts, 
thefe roots are fometimes deftroyed, therefore it is proper 
to give fome direflions to prevent it; though this rareiy 
happens- in dry ground, in which we have but few in- 
ftances of their being killed, except in the hard frofts of 
1683 and 5739—40. In thefe two winters mod of the 
artichokes were deftroyed in England ; in the laft of 
thefe winters it happened, from the little care which 
was taken of them, there having been no fro ft for fo 
many years before which had injured them, tiiat few 
people ufed any care to preferve them ; but after that 
hard froft, many people ran into the other extreme of 
covering all the roots of artichokes with long dung 
every winter, which is a very b. d method, bec.mfe the 
dung lying near the roots is very apt to rot the beft 
plants ; therefore we would advife the earthing (or, as it 
is called by the gardeners, landing) the artichokes, to be 
deferred till the latter end of November, or the begin¬ 
ning of December, provided the feafon continues mild ; 
and towards Chriftmas, if there is any danger of fevere 
frofts, to lay a quantity of long dung, pfcafe-haulm, 
Vo l. y. No. 39a. 
tanners bark, or any other light covering, over the 
ridges of earth, which will keep out the froft ; and this 
being at a diftance from the roots, will not injure them ; 
but this covering (hould be carefully taken off the be¬ 
ginning of February, or fooner, provided the feafon is 
mild, or at lead fo foon as the weather is fo, otherwife 
the plants will be injured by its lying- too long upon 
them. It will alfo be a good method, whenever any 
roots of artichokes are dug up in autumn, either to bury 
them deep in the ground in a pit till fpring, or lay them 
in a heap, fo as that they may be eafily covered in hard 
frofts ; and thefe may be a fupply, if thofe in the ground 
are deftroyed. When you have thus earthed them up, 
you have nothing more to do till February or March, 
by which time they will have grown through the ridge 
of earth ; and, when the weather is proper, mud be 
drefted as was before directed. 
At the end of February, in March, or the beginning of 
April, according to the earlinefs of the feafon, or for- 
wardnefs of the old artichoke roots, will be the proper 
time for drefling them, which mud be thus performed : 
with your fpade remove all the earth from about your 
dock, down below the part from whence the young 
(hoots are produced, clearing the earth from between 
the (hoots with the hands, fo as to be able to judge of 
the goodnefs of each, with their proper pofition upon 
the dock ; then make choice of two of the cleared, 
ftraighteft, and mod: promifing, plants, that are produced 
from the under part of the (lock, which are much pre¬ 
ferable to the ftrong thick plants which generally grow 
upon the crown of the roots; for thefe having hard 
woody ftems, never produce good fruit, but are gene¬ 
rally what the market people call rogues, which have 
very little bottom, and the fcales of their heads are irre¬ 
gularly placed. In flipping off the plants, you mud be 
careful not to injure thofe which are to remain for a 
crop ; then with your thumb force off all the other 
plants and buds alfo, clofe to the head of the flock 
whence they are produced, being very careful not to 
leave any of the buds, which would foon produce plants 
fo as to hurt thofe which are left: then with your fpade 
draw the earth about the two plants which are left, and 
with your hands dole it faft to each of them, feparating 
them as far afunder as they can conveniently be placed 
without breaking them, obferving to crop off the tops 
of the leaves- which hang down with your hands. Your 
ground being levelled between the (locks, you may fow 
thereon a fmall crop of fpinach, which will be taken off 
before the artichokes will cover the ground, and be lure 
to keep them clear from weeds; and, towards the latter 
end of April, or the beginning of May, when your old 
plants begin to fhew their fruit, you mu ft carefully look 
over your (locks, and draw up all young plants from 
them, which may have been produced fence their- dreff- 
ing, and cut off all fuckers which are produced from the 
ftems of the artichoke, leaving only the principal head, 
by which, means your fruit will be the larger; when 
your artichokes are fit to gather, you mu ft break or cut 
them down clofe to the furface of the-ground, that your 
flocks may make ftrong frefh (hoots before the end of 
October; the feafon for earthing, or, as the gardeners 
term it, landing them up, is the middle or latter end of 
November, which is thus done : cut off all the young 
(hoots quite clofe to the furface of the ground ; then 
dig between every (lock, railing all the earth between 
each row of (locks into a ridge, as is done in the common 
method of trenching ground, fo as that the row of arti¬ 
chokes may be exadlly in the middle of each ridge; this 
will be fufficient to guard them again(1 froft-; and we 
would here recommend it to the public, as infinitely -pre¬ 
ferable to long dungy which is by the unikilful often 
ufed, and is the occalion of their fruit being fmall, and 
almofl without any bottoms to them ; for there is not 
any thing fo hurtful to thefe, as new dung being either- 
buried near, or laid about them. 
. 6. <T,„ Though. 
