New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1879-12-28
DfNNER-TABLE LORE.
WHERE ENGLAND FOUND HER VEGETABLES

From The Globe
When Queen Catherine on Que occasion expressed
wish for salad 1t ~ said that there wereDO mate
rails in England Of which 10 make IL. According 4,
Northwick, this was in 1909. II 80, il must have
| been within few months of the Royal marriage.
and the young King to crafty the wish of his bride
forthwith sent over ~ Holland for gardeners 10
como and cultivate what was requisite for the pul-
pose Our native stock, in the case Of fruits ap-
pears to have been remarkably scanty and snch AZ
they were. have been for the most part altogethe-
superseded by foreign imp0rtatlOns. We have, for
instance native species of cabbage still found hero
and there IN England growing Wild but Of the 1877
distinct samples mentioned in the ROYAL Horticn-
tura SOciety's journal" for last July as having
boon under culture and examination AT Chiswick
probably no one would own TO any Relationship
with the scrubby little indigenou. cabbage or cole
wort.
There il species Of carrot again. indigenous ~
this country, and IL would seem, indeed, 70 almost
every other country where light soil IL found In
its wild state however, IL Is scarcely edible being
strong and unpleasant IN flavor. and dry and tough
IN substance IL has been said that the seed OF tho
wild carrot sOwn for two or three years IN rich a.
we'll hight soil. will yield excellent roots. Those
who have tried the experiment, however, emphat-
icaly deny the truth OF tins, and t probable that
all our present varieties came from abroad. Some
have maintained that the cultivated carrot came
originally from Flanders and that II was first grown
IT Sandwich. in Kent. in the time Of Elizabeth
Gerard calls the plant the Gambia carrot and seems
20 assume that the best sort came tc Us from Can
dla. Very much the same history may b. given Of
che parsnip This, also, IS indigenous, but IN it,
Wild state IS worthless. ana our present edible sorts
are from " over the sea-"
from originally. 1t has been found apparently IN
dgenous, in many parts OF the world. Mr.. Darwin,
for instance, found 1t wild In the Chonos Archi-
pelago. SIR w j. Hooker says that il is common
az Valparaiso where ii grows abundantly on tho
sandy hills near the In Perm aud various other
parts Of south America it appears to be at home.
and II il noteworthy fact that Mr. Darwin should
have noted IL both IN the humid forests Of the
ChonOs Archipelago and among the central CHILEAN
ta1ts, we,e somess ram do,i NOT tai Tor
whom Sir Walter Raleigh sent out, in Elizabetb's
reign, that are indebted for potatoes Herrst,
whOwent out with these cOlOnists and who wrote an
account of his travels. makes what NAV, perhaps be
regarded the earliest mention of this vegetable.
Under the beading Of roots he mentions what he
calls the "Opcnawk.' These roots" he saws ARE
round, some large walnut. OTHERS much larger:
they grow. on damp soils. many hanging together.
a. 4 ixen on ropes thoy are good i9od eit 7
century Phillips says that this root planted. as
curious exotic In the gardens of the nobility, bnt
it was long ere IL came INTO general use Many held
them to be poisonous. and 1t would seem not alto
gether professionally so. either. The potato IL
closely related TO the deadly night.hade and the
extracted very powerful narcotic. In Burg undy
the adoption Of the potato rs food was for time
mischieyoUs root In England prejudice against
it was for long time very strong more especially
among the poor. 1t was believed 70 occasion dysen
terry and leprOsy.
Rhubarb We obtained Indirectly from China
Modern Europe first became acquainted with it IN
1875. Our garden peas are SAID to have come 10 us
from ffance, anu were nIS1 k"oWn az FuiDam
pease. because the grounds about Fulham, neere
London, doe bring them forward soonest" The in
PRODUCTION was probably in the reign of Henry
WILL, whose honeymoon indulgence of his brides
desire for salad seems 70 have exerted wonderful
influence on English horticulture In The reign Of
Elizabeth, however. they were still not grown 10
any great extent, though they seem 10 have been
imported from Holland Fuller says "they
were daintes for ladies, they came so
far and cost dear" Gerard says that
there is one kind of pea indigenous to England.
Beans we appear to have imported from Morocco.
aud the authority last quoted states that there no
difference between the garden bean and the field
beam except such as il TO be attributed TO cultiva-
ton and good soil. The kidney bean is also not "a
native of England. This, we are assured, was first
introduced into this country from the Netherlands
n 15O9-another Importation therefore. all prob
ability due 10 lenry's horticultural enthusiasm at
The lime when he a dOting young spouse. IL Is
Il curious fact that the early introduction Of the
scarlct-Tunner 60 have with no little pre-
JUDGED opposition from idea that the color OF the
flowers was due 10 blood.