THE FIELD AND GARDEN VEGETABLES OF AMERICA TEXT

Produced by Janet Blenkinship, and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.) THE FIELD AND GARDEN VEGETABLES OF AMERICA; CONTAINING FULL DESCRIPTIONS OF NEARLY ELEVEN HUNDRED SPECIES AND VARIETIES; WITH DIRECTIONS FOR PROPAGATION, CULTURE, AND USE. BY FEARING BURR, JR. ILLUSTRATED. BOSTON: CROSBY AND NICHOLS, 117, WASHINGTON STREET. 1863. Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1863, BY FEARING BURR, JR., In the Clerk's office of the District Court of the District of Massachusetts. BOSTON: PRINTED BY JOHN WILSON AND SON, 5, WATER STREET * * * * * TO HON. ALBERT FEARING, President of the Hingham Agricultural and Horticultural Society, WHOSE EARNEST LABORS AND LIBERAL CONTRIBUTIONS IN THE CAUSE OF HUMANITY HAVE ENDEARED HIS NAME TO THE AGED POOR AND TO ORPHAN CHILDREN, AND WHOSE ACTIVE SERVICES HAVE EXERTED SO BENEFICIAL AN INFLUENCE ON AGRICULTURAL PURSUITS IN HIS NATIVE TOWN, This Volume is gratefully and respectfully Dedicated BY THE AUTHOR. * * * * * PREFACE. Though embracing all the directions necessary for the successful management of a Vegetable Garden, the present volume is offered to the public as a manual or guide to assist in the selection of varieties, rather than as a treatise on cultivation. Through the standard works of American authors, as well as by means of the numerous agricultural and horticultural periodicals of our time, all information of importance relative to the various methods of propagation and culture, now in general practice, can be readily obtained. But, with regard to the characteristics which distinguish the numerous varieties; their difference in size, form, color, quality, and season of perfection; their hardiness, productiveness, and comparative value for cultivation,--these details, a knowledge of which is important as well to the experienced cultivator as to the beginner, have heretofore been obtained only through sources scattered and fragmentary. To supply this deficiency in horticultural literature, I have endeavored, in the following pages, to give full descriptions of the vegetables common to the gardens of this country. It is not, however, presumed that the list is complete, as many varieties, perhaps of much excellence, are comparatively local: never having been described, they are, of course, little known. Neither is the expectation indulged, that all the descriptions will be found perfect; though much allowance must be made in this respect for the influence of soil, locality, and climate, as well as for the difference in taste of different individuals. Much time, labor, and expense have been devoted to secure accuracy of names and synonymes; the seeds of nearly all of the prominent varieties having been imported both from England and France, and planted, in connection with American vegetables of the same name, with reference to this object alone. The delay and patience required in the preparation of a work like the present may be in some degree appreciated from the fact, that in order to obtain some comparatively unimportant particular with regard to the foliage, flower, fruit, or seed, of some obscure and almost unknown plant, it has been found necessary to import the seed or root; to plant, to till, to watch, and wait an entire season. Though some vegetables have been included which have proved of little value either for the table or for agricultural purposes, still it is believed such descriptions will be found by no means unimportant; as a timely knowledge of that which is inferior, or absolutely worthless, is often as advantageous as a knowledge of that which is of positive superiority. That the volume may be acceptable to the agriculturist, seedsman, and to all who may possess, cultivate, or find pleasure in, a garden, is the sincere wish of the author. F. B., JR. HINGHAM, March, 1863. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. In the preparation of this work, I have received the cheerful co-operation of many esteemed personal friends, to whom I would here express my grateful acknowledgments. For many valuable suggestions with regard to the culture and general management of the Potato, as well as for much important information respecting nearly all of our American varieties of this vegetable, I am indebted to J. F. C. HYDE, Esq., of Newton, Mass.; whose long experience in the production of seedlings, as well as in the cultivation of established kinds, will give peculiar value to this portion of the volume. The illustrations, so excellent and truthful, are from the pencil of Mr. ISAAC SPRAGUE, of Cambridge, Mass.; whose fine delineations of animal as well as vegetable life have won for him the reputation of being "the first of living artists." I am peculiarly indebted to Rev. E. PORTER DYER, of Hingham, for much valuable advice and assistance; and cannot too fully express my obligations for the unvarying kindness and courteous manner in which repeated, and perhaps often unseasonable, requests for aid have been received and granted. My acknowledgments are also due to Hon. JOSEPH BRECK, author of "Book of Flowers," and late President of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society; to CHARLES M. HOVEY, Esq., editor of "The Magazine of Horticulture," and President of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society; to P. B. HOVEY, Esq., nurseryman and seedsman, of Cambridge, Mass.; and to DANIEL T. CURTIS, Esq., seedsman and florist, and for many years Chairman of the Committee on Vegetables of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society. For information or other very acceptable assistance, I am also indebted to Rev. CALVIN LINCOLN, of Hingham; Rev. JOHN L. RUSSELL, of Salem, Mass.; JOHN A. BUTLER, Esq., of Chelsea, Mass.; EDWARD S. RAND, Jun., Esq., of Boston; Mr. AUSTIN BRONSON, of Enfield, N.H.; GEORGE W. PRATT, Esq., of Boston; JOHN M. IVES, Esq., of Salem, Mass.; Mr. JAMES SCOTT, of Hatfield, Mass.; Mr. ALONZO CRAFTS, of Whately, Mass.; Mr. JOHN C. HOVEY, of Cambridge, Mass.; Mr. ISAAC P. RAND, of Dorchester, Mass.; Mr. GEORGE EVERETT, of Concord, Mass.; and CALEB BATES, of Kingston, Mass. From a work entitled "Descriptions des Plantes Potagères, par VILMORIN, ANDRIEUX, et CIE., Paris;" from CHARLES M'INTOSH'S excellent "Book of the Garden;" the "Gardener's Assistant," by ROBERT THOMPSON; "Rogers's Vegetable Cultivator;" and "Lawson's Agriculturist's Manual,"--I have made liberal extracts; and lest, in the course of the volume, any omission of authority may occur where it should have been accredited, my indebtedness to the valuable publications above mentioned is here candidly confessed. In adapting directions for cultivation, prepared for one climate, or section of country, to suit that of another quite dissimilar, so much alteration of the original text has at times been found necessary, that I have not felt at liberty to affix the name of the original writer, but have simply added the usual marks denoting derivation of authority. ABBREVIATIONS AND AUTHORITIES. _Big._--Plants of Boston and Vicinity. By JACOB BIGELOW, M.D. Boston, 1840. _Bon. Jard._--Le Bon Jardinier pour l'Année 1859. Par A. BOITEAU et M. VILMORIN. _Corb._--The American Gardener. By WILLIAM CORBETT. Concord, Boston, and New York, 1842. _Cot. Gard._--The Cottage Gardener. By GEORGE W. JOHNSON and ROBERT HOGG. Weekly. London. _Count. Gent._--The Country Gentleman. By LUTHER TUCKER and SON. Weekly. Albany, N.Y. _De Cand._--The Candolle's Systema Naturale. By Prof. DE CANDOLLE. 2 vols. 8vo. Paris, 1818, 1821. _Down._--The Fruit and Fruit-trees of America. By A. J. DOWNING. Revised and corrected by CHARLES DOWNING, 1858. _Gard. Chron._--The Gardener's Chronicle. Weekly. By Prof. LINDLEY. 1844 to the present time. _Gray._--Manual of the Botany of the Northern United States. By Prof. ASA GRAY. New York, 1857. _Hort._--The Horticulturist, and Journal of Art and Rural Taste. Monthly. By P. BARRY and J. JAY SMITH. Philadelphia. _Hov. Mag._--The Magazine of Horticulture, Botany, and Rural Affairs. By C. M. HOVEY. Boston. Monthly. 1834 to the present time. _Law._--The Agriculturist's Manual. By PETER LAWSON and SON. Edinburgh, 1836. _Lind._--A Guide to the Orchard and Kitchen Garden. By GEORGE LINDLEY. London, 1831. _Loud._--Encyclopædia of Gardening. By J. C. LOUDON. London, 1850. _Loud._--Encyclopædia of Agriculture. By J. C. LOUDON. London, 1844. _Low._--The Elements of Practical Agriculture. By DAVID LOW. London, 1843. _M'Int._--The Book of the Garden. By CHARLES M'INTOSH. 2 vols. Edinburgh and London, 1855. _Mill._--The Gardener's and Botanist's Dictionary. By PHILIP MILLER. Revised by Prof. MARTYN. London, 1819. _Neill._--Neill's Journal of a Horticultural Tour, &c. 8vo. Edinburgh, 1823. _New Am. Cyclopædia._--New American Cyclopædia. D. APPLETON & Co., New York. 16 vols. royal 8vo. 1857 to 1863. _Rog._--The Vegetable Cultivator. By JOHN ROGERS. London, 1851. _Thomp._--The Gardener's Assistant. By ROBERT THOMPSON. _Trans._--The Transactions of the London Horticultural Society. Commenced 1815, and continued at intervals to the present time. _Vil._--Description des Plantes Potagères. Par VILMORIN, ANDRIEUX, et CIE. Paris, 1856. * * * * * CONTENTS. CHAP. I.--_Esculent Roots._ The Beet. Carrot. Chervil, Turnip-rooted. Chinese Potato, or Japanese Yam. Chufa, or Earth Almond. German Rampion. Jerusalem Artichoke. Kohl Rabi. Oxalis, Tuberous. Oxalis, Deppe's. Parsnip. Potato. Radish. Rampion. Swede or Ruta-baga Turnip. Salsify, or Oyster Plant. Scolymus. Scorzonera. Skirret. Sweet Potato. Tuberous-rooted Chickling Vetch. Tuberous-rooted Tropæolum. Turnip. 1-121 CHAP. II.--_Alliaceous Plants._ The Cive. Garlic. Leek. Onion. Rocambole. Shallot. Welsh Onion. 122-148 CHAP. III.--_Asparaginous Plants._ The Artichoke. Asparagus. Cardoon. Hop. Oosung. Phytolacca. 149-169 CHAP. IV.--_Cucurbitaceous Plants._ The Cucumber. Egyptian Cucumber. Globe Cucumber. Gourd, or Calabash. The Melon. Musk-melon. Persian Melons. Water-melon. Papanjay, or Sponge Cucumber. Prickly-fruited Gherkin. Pumpkin. Snake Cucumber. Squash. 170-228 CHAP. V.--_Brassicaceous Plants._ Borecole, or Kale. Broccoli. Brussels Sprouts. Cabbage. Cauliflower. Colewort. Couve Tronchuda, or Portugal Cabbage. Pak-Chöi. Pe-Tsai, or Chinese Cabbage. Savoy. Sea-kale. 229-286 CHAP. VI.--_Spinaceous Plants._ Amaranthus. Black Nightshade. Leaf-beet, or Swiss Chard. Malabar Nightshade. Nettle. New-Zealand Spinach. Orach. Patience Dock. Quinoa. Sea-beet. Shepherd's Purse. Sorrel. Spinach. Wild or Perennial Spinach. 287-314 CHAP. VII.--_Salad Plants._ Alexanders. Brook-lime. Buckshorn Plantain. Burnet. Caterpillar. Celery. Celeriac, or Turnip-rooted Celery. Chervil. Chiccory, or Succory. Corchorus. Corn Salad. Cress, or Peppergrass. Cuckoo Flower. Dandelion. Endive. Horse-radish. Lettuce. Madras Radish. Mallow, Curled-leaf. Mustard. Nasturtium. Garden Picridium. Purslain. Rape. Roquette, or Rocket. Samphire. Scurvy-grass. Snails. Sweet-scented Chervil, or Sweet Cicely. Tarragon. Valeriana. Water-cress. Winter-cress, or Yellow Rocket. Wood-sorrel. Worms. 315-405 CHAP. VIII.--_Oleraceous Plants._ Angelica. Anise. Balm. Basil. Borage. Caraway. Clary. Coriander. Costmary. Cumin. Dill. Fennel. Lavender. Lovage. Marigold. Marjoram. Nigella. Parsley. Peppermint. Rosemary. Sage. Savory. Spearmint. Tansy. Thyme. 406-449 CHAP. IX.--_Leguminous Plants._ American Garden-bean. Asparagus-bean. Lima Bean. Scarlet-runner. Sieva. Chick-pea. Chickling Vetch. English Bean. Lentil. Lupine. Pea. Pea-nut. Vetch, or Tare. Winged Pea. 450-560 CHAP. X.--_Medicinal Plants._ Bene-plant. Camomile. Coltsfoot. Elecampane. Hoarhound. Hyssop. Licorice. Pennyroyal. Poppy. Palmate-leaved or Turkey Rhubarb. Rue. Saffron. Southernwood. Wormwood. 561-578 CHAP. XI.--_Mushrooms, or Esculent Fungi._ Agaricus. Boletus. Clavaria. Morchella, or Morel. Tuber, or Truffle. 579-591 CHAP. XII.--_Miscellaneous Vegetables._ Alkekengi, or Ground Cherry. Corn. Egg-plant. Martynia. Oil Radish. Okra, or Gumbo. Pepper. Rhubarb, or Pie-plant. Sunflower. Tobacco. Tomato. 592-652 INDEX 655 FIELD AND GARDEN VEGETABLES. CHAPTER I. ESCULENT ROOTS. The Beet. Carrot. Chervil, Turnip-rooted. Chinese Potato, or Japanese Yam. Chufa, or Earth Almond. German Rampion. Jerusalem Artichoke. Kohl Rabi. Oxalis, Tuberous. Oxalis, Deppes. Parsnip. Potato. Radish. Rampion. Swede, or Ruta-baga Turnip. Salsify, or Oyster Plant. Scolymus. Scorzonera. Skirret. Sweet Potato. Tuberous-rooted Chickling Vetch. Tuberous-rooted Tropæolum. Turnip. THE BEET. Beta vulgaris. The Common Beet, sometimes termed the Red Beet, is a half-hardy biennial plant; and is cultivated for its large, succulent, sweet, and tender roots. These attain their full size during the first year, but will not survive the winter in the open ground. The seed is produced the second year; after the ripening of which, the plant perishes. When fully developed, the beet-plant rises about four feet in height, with an angular, channelled stem; long, slender branches; and large, oblong, smooth, thick, and fleshy leaves. The flowers are small, green, and are either sessile, or produced on very short peduncles. The calyxes, before maturity, are soft and fleshy; when ripe, hard and wood-like in texture. These calyxes, which are formed in small, united, rounded groups, or clusters, are of a brownish color, and about one-fourth of an inch in diameter; the size, however, as well as depth of color, varying, to some extent, in the different varieties. Each of these clusters of dried calyxes contains from two to four of the true seeds, which are quite small, smooth, kidney-shaped, and of a deep reddish-brown color. These dried clusters, or groups, are usually recognized as the seeds; about fifteen hundred of which will weigh one ounce. They retain their vitality from seven to ten years. _Soil and Fertilizers._--The soil best adapted to the beet is a deep, light, well-enriched, sandy loam. When grown on thin, gravelly soil, the roots are generally tough and fibrous; and when cultivated in cold, wet, clayey localities, they are often coarse, watery, and insipid, worthless for the table, and comparatively of little value for agricultural purposes. A well-digested compost, formed of barnyard manure, loam and salt, makes the best fertilizer. Where this is not to be obtained, guano, superphosphate of lime, or bone-dust, may be employed advantageously as a substitute. Wood-ashes, raked or harrowed in just previous to sowing the seed, make an excellent surface-dressing, as they not only prevent the depredations of insects, but give strength and vigor to the young plants. The application of coarse, undigested, strawy manure, tends to the production of forked and misshapen roots, and should be avoided. _Propagation and Culture._--Beets are always raised from seed. For early use, sowings are sometimes made in November; but the general practice is to sow the seed in April, as soon as the frost is out of the ground, or as soon as the soil can be worked. For use in autumn, the seed should be sown about the middle or 20th of May; and, for the winter supply, from the first to the middle of June. Lay out the ground in beds five or six feet in width, and of a length proportionate to the supply required; spade or fork the soil deeply and thoroughly over; rake the surface smooth and even; and draw the drills across the bed, fourteen inches apart, and about an inch and a half in depth. Sow the seeds thickly enough to secure a plant for every two or three inches, and cover to the depth of the drills. Should the weather be warm and wet, the young plants will appear in seven or eight days. When they are two inches in height, they should be thinned to five or six inches apart; extracting the weaker, and filling vacant spaces by transplanting. The surplus plants will be found an excellent substitute for spinach, if cooked and served in like manner. The afterculture consists simply in keeping the plants free from weeds, and the earth in the spaces between the rows loose and open by frequent hoeings. Mr. Thompson states that "the drills for the smaller varieties should be about sixteen inches apart, and the plants should be thinned out to nine inches apart in the rows. The large sorts may have eighteen inches between the rows, but still not more than nine inches from plant to plant in the row. When large-sized roots are desired, the rows may be eighteen inches or two feet apart, and the plants twelve or fifteen inches distant from each other in the rows. But large roots are not the best for the table; and it is better to have two medium-sized roots, grown at nine inches apart, than one of perhaps double the size from twice the space. As a square foot of ground should afford plenty of nourishment to produce a root large enough for the table, the area for each plant may, therefore, be limited to that extent. If the rows are sixteen inches apart, and the plants thinned to nine inches in the row, each plant will have a space equal to a square foot. Such, of course, would also be the case if the rows were twelve inches apart, and the plants the same distance from each other in the row. But it is preferable to allow a greater space between the rows than between the plants in the row: for, by this arrangement, the leaves have better scope to grow to each side, and the plants so situated grow better than those which have an equal but rather limited space in all directions; whilst the ground can also be more easily stirred, and kept clean." _Taking the Crop._--Roots, from the first sowings, will be ready for use early in July; from which time, until October, the table may be supplied directly from the garden. They should be drawn as fast as they attain a size fit for use; which will allow more time and space for the development of those remaining. For winter use, the roots must be taken up before the occurrence of heavy frosts, as severe cold not only greatly impairs their quality, but causes them to decay at the crown. Remove the leaves, being careful not to cut or bruise the crown; spread the roots in the sun a few hours to dry; pack them in sand or earth slightly moist; and place in the cellar, out of reach of frost, for the winter. "The London market-gardeners winter their beets in large sheds, stored in moderately damp mould, and banked up with straw. Mr. Cuthill states that it is a mistake to pack them in dry sand or earth for the winter; and that the same may be said of parsnips, carrots, salsify, scorzonera, and similar roots. "The object here is, that the moist soil may not draw the natural sap out of the roots so readily as dry sand would do; and hence they retain their fresh, plump appearance, and their tenderness and color are better preserved. In taking up the roots, the greatest care must be exercised that they are neither cut, broken, wounded on the skin, nor any of the fibres removed; and, when the small-leaved varieties are grown, few, if