December 27, 1890, 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
203 
to enjoy the conditions they have selected, and in 
which they evidently prosper. It scarcely matters 
what kind of ground these rogue Parsleys are found in, 
they are always richly curled and sumptuous specimens. ’ ’ 
The moral drawn from the appearance of these fugitive 
plants is, that isolation suits the plants, that it likes 
to spread its divided leaves with free air and light 
around them ; and when the opportunity occurs, these 
instances serve to “show what a Parsley maybe, can 
be, and should be, whether wanted for use or ornament, 
or to remain in its own chosen nook as a magnificent 
vagabond.” The lesson for the cultivator is that 
Parsley should have plenty of room from the very first, 
and this lesson, we feel bound to say, cannot be too often 
enforced upon young gardeners, for they are apt to sow 
Parsley far more thickly than is prudent, and to be 
injuriously slow and timid in thinning the crop when 
the plants are actually crowding one another out of 
existence. 
Parsley may be sown in spring and autumn ; in the 
former season during the months of March and April, 
those who require much sown for successional crops. 
Sometimes Parsley will lay in the ground a long time, 
but when it comes up and begins to show itself in 
growing plants and leaf development they should be 
thinned, and this is best done by hand, to give the 
plants room in which to grow ; but the final thinning 
should be left until the plants are sufficiently developed, 
in order that the character may be accurately 
determined.— R. D. 
-—- 
ON THE CULTIVATED RACES 
OF THE CABBAGE. 
(Concluded from p. 247j. 
The Blistered Cabbage or Savoy (B. o. bullcita). 
This is the true Chou de Milan of the French, and is 
readily recognised by the much blistered or wrinkled 
condition of the leaves, caused by the more rapid 
growth of the parenchyma between the principal 
nerves. These spaces rise into large blisters on the 
surface, with corresponding depressions or hollows on 
the under surface. It is a close-headed Cabbage, and 
may be considered as intermediate between the open¬ 
headed race and the true close-headed or hearting 
Cabbage. With the former it is connected through the 
Palm Cabbage—not unlike a Brussels Sprout—and the 
Chou de Milan of English gardens, both having 
blistered leaves, but open heads. The compact head of 
leaves of the Savoy at once connects it with the close¬ 
headed Cabbage, which differs by having plain leaves. 
The name Savoy is derived from Savoie, a department 
in France, from whence probably it was first brought to 
Britain. Chou de Milan refers to Milan in Italy, from 
whence probably the French first received it. 
Although not strictly Winter Greens, the Savoys are 
generally classed under that head, as they are hardier 
than the Cabbage proper, and furnish a succession of a 
useful vegetable during autumn and winter till February 
or March, unless a very severe winter intervenes, when 
most of those that are well-hearted perish. More than 
seventy years ago seven varieties were described by 
M. Augustin Pvramus de Candolle, all of which were 
believed to be grown in British gardens under different 
names. The Green, the Dwarf and the Yellow Savoys 
were considered the most distinct, and the latter was 
the hardiest. At the present day several yellow 
varieties are cultivated, of which the Yellow Curled is 
the latest, hardiest, and of the best quality for table. 
Early Ulm is a dwarf, small-headed kind, and the 
earliest variety known. The Marcelin is considered as 
excellent in quality as Brussels Sprouts, and is very 
hardy. The latter quality applies to Conical or the 
Milan d t'ete longue of the French, one of the oldest 
varieties mentioned by ancient authors. The Dwarf 
Green Curled is also a very old sort, and is widely 
cultivated at the present day. Vertus is another old 
sort that gained an Award of Merit at the 1 egetable 
Exhibition aDd Conference held at Chiswick last year. 
The Brussels Sprouts (B. o. bullata gemmifera) is 
considered by all leading authorities as a tall-stemmed 
variety of the Savoy with an open head, bearing 
numerous small closed heads or buds in the axils of the 
leaves all along the stem. The leaves are arranged 
spirally on the stems of all the Cabbage tribe, but 
more conspicuously so in the Brussels Sprouts ; hence 
the buds have a spiral arrangement. The leaves are 
blistered like those of the Savoy. Several varieties of 
the open-headed Cabbage, such as the Chou de Milan 
of British gardens, Cottagers’ Kale, and others, possess 
the habit of producing open sprouts along the stem in 
the spring of the second year, and the former having 
blistered leaves, the Brussels Sprouts might justly lay 
claim to be most nearly allied to them, and therefore 
would have most right to be considered the typical 
form, while the Savoy would constitute a dwarf variety 
of it with a single head. Savoys may often be found 
in plantations producing a few large sprouts in the 
axils of the lower leaves. On the other hand, a new 
sort, known as Earley’s Hardy Curled is of so 
mongrel a type that one hesitates to pronounce it a 
Brussels Sprout, a Savoy, or a Borecole, for in a batch 
of seedlings individuals 1 may be found strongly imitating 
all these forms respectively. Some are dwarf with 
strongly blistered leaves like a Savoy, and others have 
curled leaves like a Kale, while all bear sprouts along 
the stem, mostly of open buds, but sometimes close and 
firm. 
The name Brussels Sprouts was given to this Cabbage 
because it had long been cultivated near Brussels and 
brought to great perfection. The written record of it 
dates back to 1213. It was long supposed that close 
and firm sprouts could only be grown for successive 
years without degenerating to open buds in the neigh¬ 
bourhood of Brussels ; but that idea has now been 
dispelled by many growers in various parts of Britain. 
The variety is also hardier even than the Savoy. The 
stems of different varieties range from 1 ft. to 4 ft. 
high, according to the kind, to the soil and culture. 
The best sorts at present cultivated are The Aigburth, 
Serymger’s Giant, Yeitch’s Exhibition, Ne Plus Ultra, 
Merritt’s, Finlay’s, Paragon, Imported, The Wroxton, 
Paris Market, and Northaw Prize Brussels Sprouts ; but 
many of these even are difficult to distinguish, and may 
be synonymous, as are a great many others. There are 
several mongrels in cultivation, the Sprouts of which 
might justly be termed small-headed Savoys or 
Cabbages. 
The Close-headed, or Hearting Cabbage 
(B. o. capitata). 
This is at once the most important and the most 
universally cultivated of all the races of the Cabbage. 
It was known to the ancient Gauls under the name of 
Chou capu, whence the modern French Cnou cabus, the 
Italian Ccipuccia, and the English Cabbage, all derived 
from the Latin caput, the head. The leaves are plain, 
never blistered like the Savoy, and the inner ones first 
become concave, and ultimately under proper culti¬ 
vation form a solid or very firm head. The varieties, 
ancient and modern, are first classified into two groups, 
according as the colour of the leaves is green or red, 
and these may again be arranged according to the shape 
of the head, and minor variations in the shape and 
colour of the leaves, as well as the size and habit of the 
plant generally, and whether early or late. 
The green-leaved sorts are widely and popularly 
spoken of as "White Cabbage, because the inner leaves 
being protected from the light become bleached to a 
white or yellow colour. One of the oldest varieties is 
the Battersea, or Early Battersea of the conical or 
sugar-loaf type. It was grown in France more than 
seventy years ago, and in England as far back 
as 1776. Slightly varying forms of it have been, 
and are grown in Britain under as many as 
thirty-seven names, practically synonyms, although 
some of them may be considered as fine selections. 
Early York and Nonpareil are also very old varieties of 
smaller size and widely cultivated for early use, the 
first-named being used for the earliest crop until 
recently, when Ellam’s Early, probably a selection from 
the Early Battersea type, came into the field, and is 
now very popular. Atkins Matchless is of the same 
type as Early York, but soon runs to flower in dry, 
warm weather. Yery suitable for small gardens and 
for table use are Joannet or St. John s Day, flat-headed, 
Coco-nut, of the same shape as the fruit of that name, 
and Little Pixie, globular, all of which may be planted 
from 12 ins. to 18 ins. apart. The first and last 
named are the smallest. Offenham is another sort of 
some merit, and Early Etampes of great excellence was 
recently imported from France. 
The Portugal Cabbage, or Couve Tronchuda, is a 
curious variety of ancient origin from the north of 
Portugal, and was first introduced to this country in 
1821, and is still occasionally grown here. The mid¬ 
ribs and principal nerves are thick, fleshy, and nearly 
white, and after having the leafy portions removed, are 
boiled, and used as a substitute for Asparagus or Sea- 
kale. The Drumhead, Field, or Scotch Cabbage is also 
of ancient origin, and represents a form of which there 
are several sub-varieties. They are flat-headed, hardy, 
and large, coarse Cabbages, mostly grown for cattle. 
For garden purposes, the Early Flat White is one of 
the best coming under my notice. 
Colewort isan Anglo-Saxon name, meaning Kale plant, 
and seems to have been originally applied to an open¬ 
headed, hardy Dorsetshire Kale, grown for winter 
greens, but is now applied to a small group of hearting 
Cabbage of diminutive size, used for the same purpose. 
The best of these are' the E-osette, and the Hardy 
Green (bleworts. Market growers, however, use Early 
Battersea, Early York, Atkins’ Matchless, and other 
Cabbages, which they sow late and pull up by the 
roots while yet quite young, tying them in bunches 
for the market. To these they apply the names Collard 
or Collet, both corruptions for Colewort. 
The Bed Cabbage (B. o. capitata rubra), of which 
numerous slightly varying forms are cultivated at the 
present day, is of ancient origin. In Britain it is 
chiefly grown for pickling purposes ; hut forty or fifty 
years ago it was extensively cultivated in the fields in 
Aberdeenshire and other northern counties, both for 
cattle and also human food. When properly cooked, 
the quality was of a high order of merit, but the colour 
was not very inviting. Its hardiness was no doubt 
much in its favour, and old-fashioned crofters and 
small farmers had a practice of pulling them up and 
stacking them in conical or cylindrical piles for winter 
use, with their heads outermost, and the roots covered 
with soil. Bed Dutch, the oldest sort, is still one of 
the best, and more extensively grown, perhaps, than 
any other. Other sorts are Blood Bed, Dwarf Bed, 
Deep Bed Erfurt, and Utrecht Bed, all of which are 
smaller, and either darker in colour, or finer in quality 
than Bed Dutch, and preferred by some for garden 
culture. 
The Flowering Cabbage or Cauliflower (B. o. 
Botrytis cauliflora). 
The Cauliflower is at once the most singular form of 
the Cabbage, and the most delicate of that class of 
vegetables. Its popular name explains itself, for it is 
the Flowering Cole or Cabbage, in reference to that 
part which is eaten and for which the plant is grown. 
The inflorescence differs from that of all the other races 
of the Cabbage, inasmuch as the central axis has been 
arrested in growth, and the lateral shoots are short and 
succulent, but afterwards elongate, forming numerous 
short stalks bearing the flowers, and ultimately the 
seed. The inflorescence of the Cauliflower is in fact 
merely a monstrous or abnormal state of some variety 
of Brassica oleracea. Many of the flower buds become 
aborted and never reach the flowering stage. The Cauli¬ 
flower was originally importedfrom Cyprus, in the middle 
of the 16th century, and from that source all the gardens 
of Europe were stocked. At that time the Cauliflower 
was spoken of by botanists as Brassica Pompeiana or 
B. Cypria, the Flowrie or Cypresse Colewurtes. By 
1680 it was grown to such perfection in England as to 
be brought to market for sale, and by 1700 it had been 
more improved here than in any other country of 
Europe. At that time Holland generally obtained her 
supply from England. Previous to its introduction to 
England and the island countries of Europe it had 
probably been cultivated for ages, not only in Cyprus, 
but Candia and other parts of the Levant. 
The varieties have never been very numerous either 
in ancient or modern times. Early, better known as 
Early London, is a very old type, probably the oldest 
in cultivation, and may have been slightly improved 
from time to time, appearing under different names. 
Snowball is one of the dwarfest and earliest, 
and is suitable for forcing, but is not so exten¬ 
sively grown as the first named. Walcheren or 
Legge’s "VValeheren Broccoli or Cauliflower is later, 
and suitable for the main crop. It withstands alike 
the drought of summer and the cold of winter. One 
of the largest, finest and most distinct of all Cauli¬ 
flowers is Yeitch’s Autumn Giant, which is in season 
from September to November. 
Broccoli (B. o. Botrytis cymosa) is simply a variety 
of the Cauliflower. De Candolle supposed it to be a 
degenerated form of some of the tall, open-headed 
Cabbages ; but this supposition may have arisen from 
the fact that the two known varieties at the time he 
speaks (1821) were what we now recognise as the 
Purple Sprouting and the White Sprouting. The 
modern white and close-headed forms differ in no 
particular respect from the Cauliflower, except in 
hardiness and their flowering period; in fact, the 
Walcheren may be reckoned a Cauliflower or a 
Broccoli, according to the time of sowing. The 
following will yield a succession from November to 
May or June—namely, Yeitch’s Self Protecting 
Autumn, Snow’s Superb Winter White, Walcheren, 
Knight’s Protecting, Early and Late Purple Sprouting, 
White Sprouting, Sutton’s Perfection, Veitch’s Model, 
Gilbert’s Yictoria, Late Queen, and Ledsham’s Latest 
of All. Chou deBurghley or Cabbage Broccoli maybe 
placed here, as the production by it of small Broccoli 
heads is its strongest botanical characteristic.— F. 
