Chapter II: Part 2

As soon as the young plants are large enough to be seen with the naked eye, in with the cultivator and go and return once in each row, being careful not to have any lumps of earth cover the plants. Follow the cultivator immediately with the hoe, loosening the soil about the hills. The old rule with farmers is to cultivate and hoe cabbage three times during their growth, and it is a rule that works very well where the crop is in good growing condition; but if the manure is deficient, the soil bakes, or the plants show signs of disease, then cultivate and hoe once or twice extra. "Hoe cabbage when wet," is another farmer's axiom. In a small garden patch the soil may be stirred among the plants as often as may be convenient: it can do no harm; cabbages relish tending, though it is not necessary to do this every day, as one enthusiastic cultivator evidently thought, who declared that, by hoeing his cabbages every morning, he had succeeded in raising capital heads.

If a season of drouth occurs when the cabbages have begun to head, the heads will harden prematurely; and then should a heavy rain fall, they will start to make a new growth, and the consequence will be many of them will split. Split or bursted cabbage are a source of great loss to the farmer, and this should be carefully guarded against by going frequently over the piece when the heads are setting, and starting every cabbage that appears to be about mature. A stout-pronged potato hoe applied just under the leaves, and a pull given sufficient to start the roots on one side, will accomplish what is needed. If cabbage that have once been started seem still inclined to burst, start the roots on the other side. Instead of a hoe they may be pushed over with the foot, or with the hand. Frequently, heads that are thus started will grow to double the size they had attained when about to burst. There is a marked difference in this habit in different varieties of cabbage. I find that the Hard-heading is less inclined to burst its head than any of the kinds I raise.

MARKETING THE CROP.

When preparing for market cabbages that have been kept over winter, particularly if they are marketed late in the season, the edges of the leaves of some of the heads will be found to be more or less decayed; do not strip such leaves off, but with a sharp knife cut clean off the decayed edges. The earlier the variety the sooner it needs to be marketed, for, as a rule, cabbages push their shoots in the spring in the order of their earliness. If they have not been sufficiently protected from the cold, the stumps will often rot off close to the head, and sometimes the rot will include the part of the stump that enters the head. If the watery-looking portion can be cut clean out, the head is salable; otherwise it will be apt to have an unpleasant flavor when cooked. As a rule, cabbages for marketing should be trimmed into as compact a form as possible; the heads should be cut off close to the stump, leaving two or three spare leaves to protect them. They may be brought out of the piece in bushel baskets, and be piled on the wagon as high as a hay stack, being kept in place by a stout canvas sheet tied closely down. In the markets of Boston, in the fall of the year, they are usually sold at a price agreed upon by the hundred head; this will vary not only with the size and quality of the cabbage, but with the season, the crop, and the quality in market on that particular day. Within a few years I have known the range of price for the Stone Mason or Fottler cabbage, equal in size and quality, to be from $3 to $17 per hundred; for the Marblehead Mammoth from $6 to $25 per hundred. Cabbages brought to market in the spring are usually sold by weight or by the barrel, at from $1 to $4 per hundred pounds.

The earliest cabbages carried to market sometimes bring extraordinary prices; and this has created a keen competition among market gardeners, each striving to produce the earliest, a difference of a week in marketing oftentimes making a difference of one half in the profits of the crop. Capt. Wyman, who controlled the Early Wyman cabbage for several years, sold some seasons thirty thousand heads if my memory serves me, at pretty much his own price. As a rule, it is the very early and the very late cabbages that sell most profitably. Should the market for very late cabbages prove a poor one, the farmer is not compelled to sell them, no matter at what sacrifice, as would be the case a month earlier; he can pit them, and so keep them over to the early spring market which is almost always a profitable one. In marketing in spring it should be the aim to make sale before the crops of spring greens become plenty, as these replace the cabbage on many tables. By starting cabbage in hot beds a crop of celery or squashes may follow them the same season.

KEEPING CABBAGES THROUGH THE WINTER.

In the comparatively mild climate of England, where there are but few days in the winter months that the ground remains frozen to any depth, the hardy cabbage grows all seasons of the year, and turnips left during winter standing in the ground are fed to sheep by yarding them over the different portions of the field. With the same impunity, in the southern portion of our own country, the cabbages are left unprotected during the winter months; and, in the warmer portions of the South they are principally a winter crop. As we advance farther North, we find that the degree of protection needed is afforded by running the plough along each side of the rows, turning the earth against them, and dropping a little litter on top of the heads. As we advance still farther northward, we find sufficient protection given by but little more than a rough roof of boards thrown over the heads, after removing the cabbages to a sheltered spot and setting them in the ground as near together as they will stand without being in contact, with the tops of the heads just level with the surface.

In the latitude of central New England, cabbages are not secure from injury from frost with less than a foot of earth thrown over the heads. In mild winters a covering of half that depth will be sufficient; but as we have no prophets to foretell our mild winters, a foot of earth is safer than six inches. Where eel-grass can be procured along the sea coast, or there is straw or coarse hay to spare, the better plan is to cover with about six inches of earth, and when this is frozen sufficiently hard to bear a man's weight (which is usually about Thanksgiving time), to scatter over it the eel-grass, forest leaves, straw, or coarse hay, to the depth of another six inches. Eel-grass, which grows on the sandy flats under the ocean along the coast, is preferred to any other covering as it lays light and keeps in dead air which is a non-conductor of heat. Forest leaves are next in value; but snow and water are apt to get among these and freezing solid destroy most of their protecting value. When I use forest leaves, I cover them with coarse hay, and add branches of trees to prevent its being blown away. In keeping cabbages through the winter, three general facts should be borne in mind, viz.: that repeated freezing and thawing will cause them to rot; that excessive moisture or warmth will also cause rot; while a dry air, such as is found in most cellars, will abstract moisture from the leaves, injure the flavor of the cabbage, and cause some of the heads to wilt, and the harder heads to waste. In the Middle States we have mostly to fear the wet of winter, and the plan for keeping for that section should, therefore, have particularly in view protection from moisture, while in the Northern States we have to fear the cold of winter, and, consequently, our plan must there have specially in view protection from cold.

When storing for winter, select a dry day, if possible, sufficiently long after rainy weather to have the leaves free of water,--otherwise they will spout it on to you, and make you the wettest and muddiest scarecrow ever seen off a farm,--then strip all the outer leaves from the head but the two last rows, which are needed to protect it. This may be readily done by drawing in these two rows toward the head with the left hand, while a blow is struck against the remaining leaves with the fist of the right hand. Next pull up the cabbages, which, if they are of the largest varieties, may be expeditiously done by a potato hoe. If they are not intended for seed purposes, stand the heads down and stumps up until the earth on the roots is somewhat dry, when it can be mostly removed by sharp blows against the stump given with a stout stick. In loading do not bruise the heads. Select the place for keeping them in a dry, level location, and, if in the North, a southern exposure, where no water can stand and there can be no wash. To make the pit, run the plough along from two to four furrows, and throw out the soil with the shovel to the requisite depth, which may be from six to ten inches; now, if the design is to roof over the pit, the cabbages may be put in as thickly as they will stand; if the heads are solid they may be either head up or stump up, and two layers deep; but if the heads are soft, then heads up and one deep, and not crowded very close, that they may have room to make heads during the winter. Having excavated an area twelve by six feet, set a couple of posts in the ground midway at each end, projecting about five feet above the surface; connect the two by a joist secured firmly to the top of each, and against this, extending to the ground just outside the pit, lay slabs, boards or poles, and cover the roof that will be thus formed with six inches of straw or old hay, and, if in the North, throw six or eight inches of earth over this. Leave one end open for entrance and to air the pit, closing the other end with straw or hay. In the North close both ends, opening one of them occasionally in mild weather.

When cabbages are pitted on a large scale this system of roofing is too costly and too cumbersome. A few thousand may be kept in a cool root cellar, by putting one layer heads down, and standing another layer heads up between these. Within a few years farmers in the vicinity of Lowell, Mass., have preserved their cabbages over winter, on a large scale, by a new method, with results that have been very satisfactory. They cut off that portion of the stump which contains the root; strip off most of the outer leaves, and then pile the cabbages in piles, six or eight feet high, in double rows, with boards to keep them apart, in cool cellars, which are built half out of ground. The temperature of these, by the judicious opening and closing of windows, is kept as nearly as possibly at the freezing point. The common practice in the North, when many thousands are to be stored for winter and spring sales, is to select a southern exposure having the protection of a fence or wall, if practicable, and, turning furrows with the plough, throw out the earth with shovels, to the depth of about six inches; the cabbages, stripped as before described, are then stored closely together, and straw or coarse hay is thrown over them to the depth of a foot or eighteen inches. Protected thus they are accessible for market at any time during the winter. If the design is to keep them over till spring, the covering may be first six inches of earth, to be followed, as cold increases, with six inches of straw, litter, or eel-grass. This latter is my own practice, with the addition of leaving a ridge of earth between every three or four rows, to act as a support and keep the cabbages from falling over. I am, also, careful to bring the cabbages to the pit as soon as pulled, with the earth among the roots as little disturbed as possible; and, should the roots appear to be dry, to throw a little earth over them after the cabbages are set in the trench. The few loose leaves remaining will prevent the earth from sifting down between the heads, and the air chambers thus made answer a capital purpose in keeping out the cold, as air is one of the best non-conductors of heat. It is said that muck-soil, when well drained, is an excellent one to bury cabbage in, as its antiseptic properties preserve them from decay. If the object is to preserve the cabbage for market purposes only, the heads may be buried in the same position in which they grew, or they may be inverted, the stump having no value in itself; but if for seed purposes, they must be buried head up, as, whatever injures the stump, spoils the whole cabbage for that object. I store between ten and fifty thousand heads annually to raise seed from, and carry them through till planting time with a degree of success varying from a loss, for seed purposes, of from one-half to thirty-three per cent. of the number buried; but, if handled early in spring, many that would be worthless for seed purposes, could be profitably marketed. A few years since, I buried a lot with a depth varying from one to four feet, and found, on uncovering them in the spring, that all had kept, and apparently equally well. In the winter of 1868, excessively cold weather came very early and unexpectedly, before my cabbage plot had received its full covering of litter. The consequence was, the frost penetrated so deep that it froze through the heads into the stumps, and, when spring came, a large portion of them came out spoiled for seed purposes, though most of them sold readily in the market. A cabbage is rendered worthless for seed when the frost strikes through the stump where it joins the head; and though, to the unpractised eye, all may appear right, yet, if the heart of the stump has a water-soaked appearance on being cut into, it will almost uniformly decay just below the head in the course of a few weeks after having been planted out. If there is a probability that the stumps have been frozen through, examine the plot early, and, if it proves so, sell the cabbages for eating purposes, no matter how sound and handsome the heads look; if you delay until time for planting out the cabbage for seed, meanwhile much waste will occur. I once lost heavily in Marblehead Mammoth cabbage by having them buried on a hill-side with a gentle slope. In the course of the winter they fell over on their sides, which let down the soil from above, and, closing the air-chambers between them, brought the huge heads into a mass, and the result was, a large proportion of them rotted badly. At another time, I lost a whole plot by burying them in soil between ledges of rock, which kept the ground very wet when spring opened; the consequence was, every cabbage rotted. If the heads are frozen more than two or three leaves deep before they are pitted they will not come out so handsome in the spring; but cabbages are very hardy, and they readily rally from a little freezing, either in the open ground or after they are buried, though it is best, when they are frozen in the open ground, to let them remain there until the frost comes out before removing them, if it can be done without too much risk of freezing still deeper, as they handle better then, for, being tougher, the leaves are not so easily broken. If the soil is frozen to any depth before the cabbages are removed, the roots will be likely to be injured in the pulling, a matter of no consequence if the cabbages are intended for market, but of some importance if they are for seed raising. Large cabbages are more easily pulled by giving them a little twist; if for seed purposes, this should be avoided, as it injures the stump. A small lot, that are to be used within a month, can be kept hung up by the stump in the cellar of a dwelling-house; they will keep in this way until spring; but the outer leaves will dry and turn yellow, the heads shrink some in size, and be apt to lose in quality. Some practise putting clean chopped straw in the bottom of a box or barrel, wetting it, and covering with heads trimmed ready for cooking, adding again wet straw and a layer of heads, so alternating until the barrel or box is filled, after which it is headed up and kept in a cool place, at, or a little below, the freezing point. No doubt this is an excellent way to preserve a small lot, as it has the two essentials to success, keeping them cool and moist.

Instead of burying them in an upright position, after a deep furrow has been made the cabbages are sometimes laid on their sides two deep, with their roots at the bottom of the furrow, and covered with earth in this position. Where the winter climate is so mild that a shallow covering will be sufficient protection, this method saves much labor.

HAVING CABBAGE MAKE HEADS IN WINTER.

When a piece of drumhead has been planted very late (sometimes they are planted on ground broken up after a crop of hay has been taken from it the same season), there will be a per cent. of the plants when the growing season is over that have not headed. With care almost all of these can be made to head during the winter. A few years ago I selected my seed heads from a large piece and then sold the first "pick" of what remained at ten cents a head, the second at eight cents, and so down until all were taken for which purchasers were willing to give one cent each. Of course, after such a thorough selling out as this, there was not much in the shape of a head left. I now had what remained pulled up and carted away, doubtful whether to feed them to the cows or to set them out to head up during winter. As they were very healthy plants in the full vigor of growth, having rudimentary heads just gathering in, I determined to set them out. I had a pit dug deep enough to bring the tops of the heads, when the plants were stood upright as they grew, just above the surface of the ground; I then stood the cabbages in without breaking off any of the leaves, keeping the roots well covered with earth, having the plants far enough apart not to crowd each other very much, though so near as to press somewhat together the two outer circles of leaves. They were allowed to remain in this condition until it was cold enough to freeze the ground an inch in thickness, when a covering of coarse hay was thrown over them a couple of inches thick, and, as the cold increased in intensity, this covering was increased to ten or twelve inches in thickness, the additions being made at two or three intervals. In the spring I uncovered the lot, and found that nearly every plant had headed up. I sold the heads for four cents a pound; and these refuse cabbages averaged me about ten cents a head, which was the price my best heads brought me in the fall. I have seen thousands of cabbages in one lot, the refuse of several acres that had been planted on sod land broken up the same season a crop of hay had been taken from it, made to head by this course, and sold in the spring for $1.30 per barrel. When there is a large lot of such cabbages the most economical way to plant them will be in furrows made by the plough. Most of the bedding used in covering them, if it be as coarse as it ought to be to admit as much air as possible while it should not mat down on the cabbages, will, with care in drying, be again available for covering another season, or remain suitable for bedding purposes. These "winter-headed" cabbages, as they are called in the market, are not so solid and have more shrinkage to them than those headed in the open ground; hence they will not bear transportation as well, neither will they keep as long when exposed to the air. The effect of wintering cabbage by burying in the soil is to make them exceedingly tender for table use.

VARIETIES OF CABBAGE.

If a piece of land is planted with seed grown from two heads of cabbage the product will bear a striking resemblance to the two parent cabbages, with a third variety which will combine the characteristics of these two, yet the resemblance will be somewhat modified at times by a little more manure, a little higher culture, a little better location, and the addition of an individuality that particular vegetables occasionally take upon themselves which we designate by the word "sport." The "sports" when they occur are fixed and perpetuated with remarkable readiness in the cabbage family, as is proved by a great number of varieties in cultivation, which are the numerous progeny of one ancestor. The catalogues of the English and French seedsmen contain long lists of varieties, many of which (and this is especially true of the early kinds) are either the same variety under a different name or are different "strains" of the same variety produced by the careful selections of prominent market gardeners through a series of years.

Every season I experiment with foreign and American varieties of cabbage to learn the characteristics of the different kinds, their comparative earliness, size, shape, and hardness of head, length of stump, and such other facts as would prove of value to market gardeners. There is one fact that every careful experimenter soon learns, that one season will not teach all that can be known relative to a variety, and that a number of specimens of each kind must be raised to enable one to make a fair comparison. It is amusing to read the dicta which appear in the agricultural press from those who have made but a single experiment with some vegetable; they proclaim more after a single trial than a cautious experimenter would dare to declare after years spent in careful observation. The year 1869 I raised over sixty varieties of cabbage, importing nearly complete suites of those advertised by the leading English and French seed houses, and collecting the principal kinds raised in this country. In the year 1888, I grew eighty-five different varieties and strains of cabbages and cauliflowers. I do not propose describing all these in this treatise or their comparative merits; of some of them I have yet something to learn, but I will endeavor to introduce with my description such notes as I think will prove of value to my fellow farmers and market gardeners.

I will here say in general of the class of early cabbages, that most of them have elongated heads between ovoid and conical in form. They appear to lack in this country the sweetness and tenderness that characterize some varieties of our drumhead, and, consequently, in the North when the drumhead enters the market there is but a limited call for them.

It may be well here to note a fundamental distinction between the drumhead cabbage of England and those of this country. In England the drumhead class are almost wholly raised to feed to stock. I venture the conjecture that owing in part, or principally, to the fact European gardeners have never had the motive, and, consequently, have never developed the full capacity of the drumhead as exampled by the fine varieties raised in this country. The securing of sorts reliable for heading being with them a matter of secondary consideration, seed is raised from stumps or any refuse heads that may be standing when spring comes round. For this reason English drumhead cabbage seed is better suited to raise a mass of leaves than heads, and always disappoints our American farmers who buy it because it is cheap with the expectation of raising cabbage for market. English-grown drumhead cabbage seed is utterly worthless for use in this country except to raise greens or collards.

The following are foreign varieties that are accepted in this country as standards, and for years have been more or less extensively cultivated: EARLY YORK, EARLY OXHEART, EARLY WINNIGSTADT, RED DUTCH, RED DRUMHEAD. In my experience as a seed dealer, the Sugar Loaf and Oxheart are losing ground in the farming community, the Early Jersey Wakefield having, to a large extent, replaced them.

~Early York.~ Heads nearly ovoid, rather soft, with few waste leaves surrounding them, which are of a bright green color. Reliable for heading. Stump rather short. Plant two feet by eighteen inches. This cabbage has been cultivated in England over a hundred years. LITTLE PIXIE with me is earlier than Early York, as reliable for heading, heads much harder, and is of better flavor; the heads do not grow quite as large.

~Early Oxheart.~ Heads nearly egg-shaped, small, hard, few waste leaves, stumps short. A little later than Early York. Have the rows two feet apart, and the plants eighteen inches apart in the row.

~Early Winnigstadt.~ (A German cabbage.) Heads nearly conical in shape, having usually a twist of leaf at the top; larger than Oxheart, are harder than any of the early oblong heading cabbages; stumps middling short. Matures about ten days later than Early York. The Winnigstadt is remarkably reliable for heading, being not excelled in this respect when the seed has been raised with care, by any cabbage grown. It is a capital sort for early market outside our large cities, where the very early kinds are not so eagerly craved. It is so reliable for heading, that it will often make fine heads where other sorts fail; and I would advise all who have not succeeded in their efforts to grow cabbage, to try this before giving up their attempts. It is raised by some for winter use, and where the drumheads are not so successfully raised, I would advise my farmer friends to try the Winnigstadt, as the heads are so hard that they keep without much waste. Have rows two feet apart, and plant twenty inches to two feet apart in the rows.

~Red Dutch.~ Heads nearly conical, medium sized, hard, of a very deep red; outer leaves numerous, and not so red as the head, being somewhat mixed with green; stump rather long. This cabbage is usually planted too late; it requires nearly the whole season to mature. It is used for pickling, or cut up fine as a salad, served with vinegar and pepper. This is a very tender cabbage, and, were it not for its color, would be an excellent sort to boil; to those who have a mind to eat it with their eyes shut, this objection will not apply.

~Red Drumhead.~ Like the preceding, with the exception that the heads grow round, or nearly so, are harder, and of double the size. It is very difficult to raise seed from this cabbage in this country. I am acquainted with five trials, made in as many different years, two of which I made myself, and all were nearly utter failures, the yield, when the hardest heads were selected, being at about the rate of two great spoonfuls of seed from every twenty cabbages. French seed-growers are more successful, otherwise this seed would have to sell at a far higher figure in the market than any other sort.

~The Little Pixie.~ has much to recommend it, in earliness, quality, reliability for heading, and hardness of the head; earlier than Early York, though somewhat smaller.

Among those that deserve to be heartily welcomed and grow in favor, are the EARLY ULM SAVOY (for engraving and description of which see under head of Savoy), and the ST. DENNIS DRUMHEAD, a late, short-stumped sort, setting a large, round, very solid head, as large, but harder, than Premium Flat Dutch. The leaves are of a bluish-green, and thicker than those of most varieties of drumhead. Our brethren in Canada think highly of this cabbage, and if we want to try a new drumhead, I will speak a good word for this one.

~Early Schweinfurt~, or ~Schweinfurt Quintal~, is an excellent early drumhead for family use; the heads range in size from ten to eighteen inches in diameter, varying with the conditions of cultivation more than any other cabbage I am acquainted with. They are flattish round, weigh from three to nine pounds when well grown, are very symmetrical in shape, standing apart from the surrounding leaves. They are not solid, though they have the finished appearance that solidity gives; they are remarkably tender, as though blanched, and of very fine flavor. It is among the earliest of drumheads, maturing at about the same time as the Early Winnigstadt. As an early drumhead for the family garden, it has no superior; and where the market is near, and does not insist that a cabbage head must be hard to be good, it has proved a very profitable market sort.

The following are either already standard American varieties of cabbage, or such as are likely soon to become so; very possibly there are two or three other varieties or strains that deserve to be included in the list. I give all that have proved to be first class in my locality: EARLY WAKEFIELD, EARLY WYMAN, EARLY SUMMER, ALL SEASONS, HARD HEADING, SUCCESSION, WARREN, VANDERGAW, PEERLESS, NEWARK, FLAT DUTCH, PREMIUM FLAT DUTCH, STONE MASON, LARGE LATE DRUMHEAD, MARBLEHEAD MAMMOTH DRUMHEAD, AMERICAN GREEN GLAZED, FOTTLER'S DRUMHEAD, BERGEN DRUMHEAD, DRUMHEAD SAVOY, and AMERICAN GREEN GLOBE SAVOY. All of these varieties, as I have previously stated, are but improvements of foreign kinds; but they are so far improved through years of careful selection and cultivation, that, as a rule, they appear quite distinct from the originals when grown side by side with them, and this distinction is more or less recognized, in both English and American catalogues, by the adjective "American" or "English" being added after varieties bearing the same name.

~Early Wakefield~, sometimes called ~Early Jersey Wakefield.~ Heads mostly nearly conical in shape but sometimes nearly round, of good size for early, very reliable for heading; stumps short. A very popular early cabbage in the markets of Boston and New York. Plant two and a half feet by two feet. There are two strains of this cabbage, one a little later and larger than the other.

~Early Wyman.~ This cabbage is named after Capt. Wyman, of Cambridge, the originator. Like Early Wakefield the heads are usually somewhat conical, but sometimes nearly round; in structure they are compact. In earliness it ranks about with the Early Wakefield, and making heads of double the size, it has a high value as an early cabbage. Capt. Wyman had entire control of this cabbage until within the past few years, and, consequently, has held Boston Market in his own hands, to the chagrin of his fellow market gardeners, raising some seasons as many as thirty thousand heads. Have the rows from two to two and a half feet apart, and the plants from twenty to twenty-four inches apart in the row. Crane's Early is a cross between the Wyman and Wakefield, intermediate in size and earliness.

~Premium Flat Dutch.~ Large, late variety; heads either round or flat, on the top (varying with different strains); rather hard; color bluish green; leaves around heads rather numerous; towards the close of the season, the edge of some of the exterior leaves and the top of the heads assume a purple cast. The edges of the exterior leaves, and of the two or three that make the outside of the head, are quite ruffled, so that when grown side by side with Stone Mason, this distinction between the habit of growth of the two varieties is noticeable at quite a distance. Stumps short; reliable for heading. Have the rows three feet apart, and the plants from two and a half to three feet apart in the rows. This cabbage is very widely cultivated, and, in many respects, is an excellent sort to raise for late marketing. There are several strains of it catalogued by different seedsmen under various names, such as Sure Head, &c.

~Stone Mason.~ An improvement on the Mason, which cabbage was selected by Mr. John Mason of Marblehead, from a number of varieties of cabbage that came from a lot of seed purchased and planted as Savoys. Mr. John Stone afterwards improved upon the Mason cabbage, by increasing the size of the heads. Different growers differ in their standard of a Stone Mason cabbage, in earliness and lateness, and in the size, form, and hardness of the head. But all these varieties agree in the characteristics of being very reliable for heading, in having heads which are large, very hard, very tender, rich and sweet; short stumps, and few waste leaves. The color of the leaves varies from a bluish green to a pea-green, and the structure from nearly smooth to much blistered. In their color and blistering some specimens have almost a Savoy cast. The heads of the best varieties of Stone Mason range in weight from six to twenty-five pounds, the difference turning mostly on soil, manure, and cultivation.

The Stone Mason is an earlier cabbage than Premium Flat Dutch, has fewer waste leaves, and side by side, under high cultivation, grows to an equal or larger size, while it makes heads that are decidedly harder and sweeter. These cabbages are equally reliable for heading. I am inclined to the opinion that under poor cultivation the Premium Flat Dutch will do somewhat better than the Stone Mason.

Until the introduction of Fottler's Drumhead it was the standard drumhead cabbage in the markets of Boston and other large cities of the North. Have the rows three feet apart, and the plants from two to three feet apart in the row.

~Large Late Drumhead.~ Heads large, round, sometimes flattened at the top, close and firm; loose leaves numerous; stems short; reliable for heading, hardy, and a good keeper. The name "Large Late Drumhead" includes varieties raised by several seedsmen in this country, all of which resemble each other in the above characteristics, and differ in but minor points. Have rows three feet apart, and plants from two and a half to three feet apart in the row.

~Marblehead Mammoth Drumhead.~ This is the largest of the cabbage family, having sometimes been grown to weigh over ninety pounds to the plant. It originated in Marblehead, Mass., being produced by Mr. Alley, probably from the Mason, by years of high cultivation and careful selection of seed stock. I introduced this cabbage and the Stone Mason to the general public many years ago, and it has been pretty thoroughly disseminated throughout the United States. Heads varying in shape between hemispherical and spherical, with but few waste leaves surrounding them; size very large, varying from fifteen to twenty inches in diameter, and, in some specimens, they have grown to the extraordinary dimensions of twenty-four inches. In good soil, and with the highest culture, this variety has attained an average weight of thirty pounds by the acre. Quality, when well grown, remarkably sweet and tender, as would be inferred from the rapidity of its growth. Cultivate in rows four feet apart, and allow four feet between the plants in the rows. Sixty tons of this variety have been raised from a single acre.

~American Green Glazed.~ Heads loose, though rather large, with a great body of waste leaves surrounding them; quality poor; late; stump long. This cabbage was readily distinguished among all the varieties in my experimental plot by the deep, rich green of the leaves, with their bright lustre as though varnished. It is grown somewhat extensively in the South, as it is believed not to be so liable to injury from insects as other varieties. Plant two and a half feet apart each way. I would advise my Southern friends to try the merits of other kinds before adopting this poor affair. I know, through my correspondence, that the Mammoth has done well as far South as Louisiana and Cuba, and the Fottler, in many sections of the South, has given great satisfaction.

~Fottler's Early Drumhead.~ Several years ago a Boston seedsman imported a lot of cabbage seed from Europe, under the name of Early Brunswick Short Stemmed. It proved to be a large heading and very early Drumhead. The heads were from eight to eighteen inches in diameter nearly flat, hard, sweet, and tender in quality; few waste leaves; stump short. In earliness it was about a fortnight ahead of the Stone Mason. It was so much liked by the market gardeners that the next season he ordered a larger quantity; but the second importation, though ordered and sent under the same name, proved to be a different and inferior kind, and the same result followed one or two other importations. The two gardeners who received seed of the first importation brought to market a fine, large Drumhead, ten days or a fortnight ahead of their fellows. The seed of the true stock was eagerly bought up by the Boston market gardeners, most of it at _five dollars an ounce_. After an extensive trial on a large scale by the market farmers around Boston, and by farmers in various parts of the United States, Fottler's Cabbage has given great satisfaction, and become a universal favorite, and when once known it, and especially the improved strain of it, known as Deep Head, is fast replacing some of the old varieties of Drumhead. Very reliable for heading.

~Vandergaw Cabbage.~ This new Long Island Cabbage must be classed as A No. 1 for the midsummer and late market. It is as sure to head as the Succession, and has some excellent characteristics in common.

It makes large, green heads, hard, tender, and crisp. This is an acquisition.

~The Warren Cabbage.~ This first-class cabbage is closely allied to, but an improvement on, the old Mason Cabbage of twenty-five years ago. It makes a head deep, round, and very hard, the outer leaves wrapping it over very handsomely. In reliability for heading no cabbage surpasses it; a field of them when in their prime is as pretty a sight as a cabbage man would wish to see. It comes in as early as some strains of Fottler, and a little earlier than others. A capital sort to succeed the Early Summer. The heads being very thick through, and nearly round, make it an excellent sort to carry through the winter, as it "peels" well, as cabbage-growers say. Ten inches in diameter, in size it is just about right for profitable marketing. A capital sort, exceedingly popular among market-man in this vicinity.

~Early Bleichfeld Cabbage.~ I find the Bleichfeld to be among the earliest of the large, hard-heading Drumheads, maturing earlier than the Fottler's Brunswick. The heads are large, very solid, tender when cooked, and of excellent flavor. The color is a lighter green than most varieties and it is as reliable for heading as any cabbage I have ever grown. The above engraving I have had made from a photograph of a specimen grown on my grounds.

~Danish Drumhead Cabbage.~ In 1879, Mr. Edward Abelgoord wrote me from Canada, that he raised a large Drumhead Cabbage, the seed of which was brought from Denmark, which was the best kind of cabbage that he had seen in that latitude (46°), being very valuable for the extreme North. It was earlier than Fottler's Drumhead, and made large, flat heads, of excellent flavor, and was so reliable for heading. I raised a field of this new cabbage, and it proved a large, flat, early Drumhead, very reliable for heading.

~The Reynolds Early Cabbage.~ In the year 1875, Mr. Franklin Reynolds, of this town, crossed the Cannon-Ball Cabbage on the Schweinfurt Quintal, by carefully transferring the pollen of the former on the latter, the stamens having first been removed, and immediately tying muslin around the impregnated blossoms to keep away all insects. The results were a few ripe seeds. These were carefully saved and planted the next season, when the product showed the characteristics of the two parents. The best heads were selected from the lot, and, from these, seeds were raised. Several selections were made of the choicest heads from year to year; and I now have the pleasure of introducing the results, _a new cabbage which combines the good qualities of both its parents_.

The flavor of this new cabbage is rich, tender, and sweet, being superior to the general Drumhead class, making it a very superior variety for family use, and also for marketing when there is not a long transportation. None of the scores of varieties I have ever grown has a shorter stump than this; the heads appear to rest directly on the ground, and no one is surer to head.

~All-Seasons Cabbage.~ This new cabbage is the result of a cross made by a Long Island gardener between the Flat Dutch and a variety of Drumhead. The result is a remarkably large, early Drumhead, that matures close in time with the Early Summer, while it is from one third to one half larger. It is an excellent variety either as an early or late sort; the roundness of the head, leaving a thick, solid cabbage, should it become necessary, as is often the case with those marketed in the spring, to peel off the outer layer of leaves. Heads large in size, solid and tender, and rich flavored when cooked. It has already, in three years, verified the prophecy I made when sending it out, and become a standard variety in some localities.

~Gregory's Hard-Heading Cabbage.~ I am not acquainted with any variety of cabbage (I believe I have raised about all the native and foreign varieties that have been catalogued) that makes so hard a head as does the "Hard-heading" when fully matured. Neither am I acquainted with any variety that is so late a keeper as is this; the German gardener, from whom I obtained it, said that it gave him, and his friends who had it, complete control of the Chicago market for about a fortnight after all other varieties had "played out." My own experience with it tends to confirm this statement, for under the same conditions it kept decidedly later than all my other varieties, was greener in color, and when planted out they were so late to push seed-shoots that I almost despaired of getting a crop of seed. I find, also, that they are much less inclined to burst than any of the hard-heading varieties. Heads grow to a good market size, are more globular than Flat Dutch; and, as might be presumed, of great weight in proportion to their size. The color is a peculiar green, rather more of an olive than most kinds of cabbage. About a fortnight later than Flat Dutch. For late fall, winter, and spring sales plant 3 by 3 the first of June.

~Early Deep-Head Cabbage.~ This is a valuable improvement on the Fottler made by years of careful selection and high cultivation by Mr. Alley of Marblehead, a famous cabbage grower, who, as the name indicates, has produced a deeper, rounder heading variety than the original Fottler, thus making what that was not, an excellent sort for winter and spring marketing. It has all the excellent traits of its parent in reliability for making large, handsome heads.

~Bergen Drumhead.~ Heads round, rather flat on the top, solid; leaves stout, thick, and rather numerous; stump short. With me, under same cultivation, it is later than Stone Mason. It is tender and of good flavor. A popular sort in many sections, particularly in the markets of New York City. Have the plants three feet apart each way.

SAVOY CABBAGES.

The Savoys are the tenderest and richest-flavored of cabbages, though not always as sweet as a well-grown Stone Mason; nor is a Savoy grown on poor soil, or one that has been pinched by drouth, as tender as a Stone Mason that has been grown under favoring circumstances; yet it remains, as a rule, that the Savoy surpasses all other cabbages in tenderness, and in a rich, marrow-like flavor. The Savoys are also the hardiest of the cabbage tribe, enduring in the open field a temperature within sixteen degrees of zero without serious injury; and if the heads are not very hard they will continue to withstand repeated changes from freezing to thawing for a couple of months, as far north as the latitude of Boston. A degree of freezing improves them, and it is common in that latitude to let such as are intended for early winter use, in the family, remain standing in the open ground where they grew, cutting the heads as they are wanted.

As a rule Savoys neither head as readily (the "Improved American Savoy" being an exception) nor do the heads grow as large as the Drumhead varieties; indeed, most of the kinds in cultivation are so unreliable in these respects as to be utterly worthless for market purposes, and nearly so for the kitchen garden.

~The Drumhead Savoy.~ This, as the name implies, is the result of a cross between a Savoy and a Drumhead cabbage, partaking of the characteristics of each. Many of the cabbages sold in the market as Savoy are really this variety. One variety in my experimental garden, which I received as TOUR'S SAVOY (evidently a Drumhead variety of the Savoy), proved to be much like Early Schweinfurt in earliness and style of heading; the heads were very large, but quite loose in structure; I should think it would prove valuable for family use.

It is a fact that does not appear to be generally known that we have among the Savoys some remarkably early sorts which rank with the earliest varieties of cabbage grown. Pancalier and Early Ulm Savoy are earlier than that old standard of earliness, Early York; Pancalier being somewhat earlier than Ulm.

~Pancalier~ is characterized by very coarsely blistered leaves of the darkest-green color; the heads usually gather together, being the only exception I know of to the rule that cabbage heads are made up of overlapping leaves, wrapped closely together. It has a short stump, and with high cultivation is reliable for heading. The leaves nearest the head, though not forming a part of it, are quite tender, and may be cooked with the head. Plant fifteen by thirty inches.

~Early Ulm Savoy~ is a few days later than Pancalier, and makes a larger head; the leaves are of a lighter green and not so coarsely blistered; stump short; head round; very reliable for heading. It has a capital characteristic in not being so liable as most varieties to burst the head and push the seed shoot immediately after the head is matured. For first early, I know no cabbages so desirable as these for the kitchen garden.

The ~Early Dwarf Savoy~ is a desirable variety of second early. The heads are rather flat in shape, and grow to a fair size. Stumps short; reliable for heading.

~Improved American Savoy.~ Everything considered, this is the Savoy, "par excellence," for the market garden. It is a true Savoy, the heads grow to a large size, from six to ten inches in diameter, varying, of course, with soil, manure, and cultivation. In shape the heads are mostly globular, occasionally oblong, having but few waste leaves, and grow very solid. Stump short. In reliability for heading it is unsurpassed by any other cabbage.

~Golden Savoy~ differs from other varieties in the color of the head, which rises from the body of light green leaves, of a singular pale yellow color, as though blanched. The stumps are long, and the head rather small, a portion of these growing pointed. It is very late, not worth cultivating, except as a curiosity.

~Norwegian Savoy.~ This is a singular half cabbage, half kale--at least, so it has proved under my cultivation. The leaves are long, narrow, tasselated, and somewhat blistered. The whole appearance is very singular and rather ornamental. I have tried this cabbage twice, but have never got beyond the possible promise of a head.

~Victoria Savoy~, ~Russian Savoy~, and ~Cape Savoy~, tested in my experimental garden, did not prove desirable either for family use or for market purposes.

~Feather Stemmed Savoy.~ This is a cross between the Savoy and Brussels sprouts, having the habit of growth of Brussels sprouts.

OTHER VARIETIES OF CABBAGE.

I will add notes on some other varieties which have been tested, from year to year, in my experimental plot. The results from tests of different strains of standard sorts, I have not thought it worth the while to record.

~Cannon Ball.~ The heads are usually spherical, attaining to a diameter of from five to nine inches, with the surrounding leaves gathered rather closely around them; in hardness and relative weight it is excelled by but few varieties. Stump short. It delights in the highest cultivation possible. It is about a week later than Early York. In those markets where cabbages are sold by weight, it will pay to grow for market; it is a good cabbage for the family garden.

~Early Cone~, of the Wakefield class, but with me not as early.

~Garfield Pickling~, of late variety, of the conical class.

~Cardinal Red.~ A large, late variety of red; but on my grounds, it is not equal to Red Drumhead.

~Vilmorin's Early Flat Dutch.~ Not quite as large as Early Summer, though about as early and resembles it in shape of head.

~Royal German Drumhead.~ Reliable for heading.

~Large White Solid Magdeburg.~ A late Drumhead; short stumped; reliable for heading. Medium late.

~Pak Choi.~ Evidently of the Kale class; no heads.

~Chou de Burghlez~ and ~Chou de Milan~. These are coarse, loose, small heading varieties, allied to Kale. The latter is of the Savoy class.

~Earliest Erfurt Blood-Red.~ Decidedly the earliest of the red cabbages. Very reliable for heading. A Drumhead; smaller than Red Drumhead. Very dark red.

~Empress.~ Resembles Wyman in size and shape; but the heads are more pointed, and it makes head earlier. Heads well.

~Schlitzer.~ This makes heads mostly shaped like the Winnigstadt, but a third larger. Its mottling of green and purple gives it a striking appearance. Early and very reliable for heading. Heads are not very hard; but, when cooked, are just about as tender and rich-flavored as the Savoy. Promises to be an excellent sort for family use.

~Rothelburg.~ An early sure heading variety of the Drumhead class. Heads of medium size; resembling in shape Deep Head.

~Sure Head.~ A strain of Flat Dutch. A late variety; heads deeper than Fottler, but with me not so reliable.

~Dark Red Pointed.~ Resembles Winnigstadt in shape. About as late as Red Dutch, and not as desirable.

~Bacalan Late.~ In shape resembles Winnigstadt. Grow a little wild.

~Amack.~ A late variety. Heads generally nearly globular and quite hard. Very reliable for heading.

~Bangholm.~ First of all. As early as the earliest, but very small,--not as large as Little Pixie.

~Early Enfield Market.~

~Tourleville.~ Heads resemble Wakefield in form; but, with me, are neither so large nor so large, and are more inclined to burst.

~Danish Round Winter.~ A late variety; bearing deep, hard heads on long stumps.

~Dwarf Danish.~ Late. Reliable to head; uneven in time of heading. Worth planting for market.

~Danish Ball Drumhead.~ Heads not characterized by globular shape, but rather flattish. Irregular in length of stump.

~Early Paris.~ Closely resembles Wakefield.

~Very Early Etampes.~ Earlier than Wakefield. Shape partakes of both Oxheart and Wakefield.

~Early Mohawk.~ Light green in color; a good header, but not so hard heading as Fottler. Appears to have a little of the Savoy cross in it.

~Sure Head.~ A late variety of the Dutch class; reliable for heading; stump rather long.

~Excelsior.~ A variety which is of the Fottler class, but makes smaller sized heads.

~Louisville Drumhead.~ Of the flat Dutch type; nearly as early as Early Summer.

~Early Advance.~ Of the Wakefield type. With me it is full as early as Wakefield, and considerably larger. Rather coarser in structure.

~Market Garden.~ Of the Fottler class; very reliable for heading. Heads of good size, but rather coarser than the Deep Head.