In the autumn, before the frost sets in, the roots should be taken up on a dry day, their tops cut off without injuring the crown, and laid up in sand in a corner of the garden-shed, or other dry building, where they may be preserved from the frost. Such roots as are not wanted for use may be planted out in April for seed; but, in order to preserve the stock pure, care should be taken to select those roots only which are of the most perfect kind. 8. BORAGE, Borago officinalis is an annual plant, a native of England. It was formerly in great repute as a cordial. According to Withering, the young leaves may be used as a salad or a pot-herb; and the flowers form an ingredient in cool tankards. The seeds require to be sown in March, in a light dry spot, and likewise a little in April and May, for a succession. Wherever it ripens and sheds its seeds, it will rise again abundantly: having a tap root, it does not bear transplanting, except with great care, and when the plants are very young. 9. BORECOLE AND SPROUTS. The Borecole contains several sub-varieties. They are, excepting the Neapolitan variety, peculiarly hardy; they resist frosts, and retain their green appearance throughout the winter: hence their value as winter greens. The following, together with what are termed sprouts, are the principal sorts at present cultivated in this country. 1. *Colebrook Dale Borecole. 2. *German Borecole. Curlies, or Curled Kale. 3. Green Borecole. 4. Neapolitan Borecole. 5. M. M Cavolo torsolo ricciuto. Those marked by an asterisk (*) will be mentioned again under the head of WINTER GREENS. The Brussels Sprouts produce tall stems three or four feet high, with a head somewhat like a Savoy: from the axils or base of the leaves arise small green heads like little cabbages, about one or two inches in diameter; these are peculiarly rich and sweet. No. 4. is too tender to bear the winter in this country; but if sown in March, it continues fit for use during the autumn. No. 9. was introduced into England in 1821, and No. 10, in 1822. As both these are too tender to stand the winters here, seeds should be sown in August, and the plants kept in a frame till the spring, and planted out at the same time as Cauliflowers, for an early summer crop; and the succession must be kept up by spring and summer sowings. The ribs of the outer and large leaves, when divested of their green parts, and well boiled, make a good dish, somewhat resembling Sea Kale. The heart or middle part of the plant is, however, the best for use; it is peculiarly delicate, tender, and agreeably flavoured, without any of the coarseness which often belongs to the cabbage tribe. The dwarf sort is much the earliest; and when the lower leaves are taken off for use, it throws out numerous sprouts from the lower part of the stem, which is not the case with the other sort. 10. BROCCOLI. The few varieties of Broccoli that were known in Miller's time, are supposed to have proceeded from the Cauliflower, which was originally imported from the island of Cyprus, about the middle of the sixteenth century. Miller mentions the white and purple as coming from Italy; and it is conjectured that from these two sorts all the subsequent kinds have arisen. The following are those principally cultivated in our gardens at present. 1. Purple Cape. 2. Green Cape. 3. Grange's Early Cauliflower. 4. Green's Close-headed Win ter. 5. Early Purple. 6. Early White. 7. Dwarf Brown Close-headed. 8. Tall Large-headed Purple. 9. Cream-coloured. Portsmouth Broccoli. 10. Sulphur-coloured. 11. Spring White. Cauliflower Broccoli. 12. Late Dwarf Close headed Purple. 13. Latest Green. Danish Broccoli. Siberian Broccoli. Nos. 1. and 2., if sown in May and June, will produce heads in regular succession from August to December; sown in July and August, if the weather is mild, will produce heads in April and May. No. 3. sown at three different times, between the beginning of May to the end of June, will produce heads in succession from Michaelmas to Christmas. No. 4. continues to bear through the winter, if the weather is mild. Sow the end of May, and the produce in November, December, January, and February. No. 5. Sow in April, and the produce will be from November till February. Sow in June, and the produce will be sprouts in March and April. No. 6. To obtain early heads, sow in February or the beginning of March; and the produce will be from November till Christmas. This sort is frequently cut by market gardeners previous to severe frosts, and kept in sheds or cellars for market, No. 7. Sow the middle of April, and the crop will come into use in March and April. No. 8. Sow the end of March, and the crop will come into use in March and April. No. 9. Sow the middle of April, and heads will be produced in February, March, and April: these frequently measure two feet in circumference. No. 10. 11, 12. Sow in March and April, and the crop will come into use in April and May. No. 13. is the hardiest of all the Broccolis, as the severest winter will not destroy it. Sow the end of April, and the crop will come into use in May the following year. To secure Broccolis through the winter, it is always best to take up part of all the last nine sorts in the beginning of November, disturbing the roots as little as possible, and lay them in slopingly with their heads towards the north, only a few inches above the ground, and about eighteen inches asunder. By this means the crown of the plant lying low, is soon covered and protected by the snow which generally falls previously to long and severe frosts; the plant is also rendered tougher in fibre, and hardier by the check received in this last removal. Hort. Trans. Vol. iii. p. 161. 169. 11. BURNET. Poterium Sanguisorba, or Common Burnet, is a perennial plant a native of England. A drink was made of it formerly, which was reckoned useful in many complaints, and was also an ingredient in cool tankards: the young leaves taste something like cucumbers, and are occasionally put into salads. Although a perennial, the seeds are generally sown in drills, at two or three different periods between the spring and autumn. 12. CABBAGES. The Cabbage is the most ancient of our esculent vegetables the tribe includes an extensive assortment of varieties and subvarieties, all probably proceeding from one common origin. The common Cabbage produces firm heads, green, greenish yellow, or red: they are all white within, except the last, which ought to be of bright deep red, very firm and compact. The following are the principal varieties cultivated in our gardens: 1. Early Battersea. 2. Early Cornish. Paignton. Penton. 3. Early Dutch. 4. Early Dwarf. 5. Early York. 6. East Ham. 7. Emperor. 8. Imperial. 9. Large Penton. Drumhead. The Cabbage being a biennial plant, the chief or early summer crop is to be sown in the preceding autumn, from the 12th to the 20th of August; but the latter summer and autumn crops, to come in from July to the end of the year, will require to be sown in the spring, from the beginning of April till the end of May. The Red Cabbage, if wanted for pickling early in the autumn, should be sown in August; but for the winter and spring use, those sown in April will resist the frost much better, and be of a better quality than those sown in the autumn. It The Vanack Cabbage is scarcely to be found in the seedsmen's lists, but is highly deserving of notice. has been cultivated in the garden of the Earl of Egremont, at Petworth, so long since as the year 1776. Seeds of it have been presented to the Horticultural Society of London by Mr. Torbron, gardener to the |