The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1881-05-04
Salads.

The use of lettuce, in this country, is very
deservedly becoming, more and more popu
lar every year; the numerous emigrants
from Germany and France have taught us
something worth knowing about its value as
a cooling salad in warm weather. AS ma
ton, Americans eat altogether too much
meat in warm weather, especially fat fried
pork. This is well enough in winter wealth
er, but something different is far more
wholesome for a summer diet. With a few
eggs, quart or two of milk, and some fresh
lettuce and bread with suitable seasonings,
Frenchman will get up an appetizing meal,
for warm day, quite as cheap and far more
wholesome than our staple pork and beans,
1t is hardly to be expected that Yankees will
at once take kindly to the use of sweet oil.
so general among the Germans and French
with salad: it is neither so cheap nor so
good here as in Europe; it comes to us adul-
terated with cotton seed oil, if nothing
worse, and costs rather more than it ought,
to be generally used; besides every farmer
has at hand something far better 10 the
fresh cream and milk of his dairy; it will
not take lopg for an ingenious Yankee girl
to learn how 10 mix cream, vinegar, salt and
mustard, together with the yolk of an egg,
to form delicious salad dressing. Lettuce
leaves hold a good deal of water when
washed and this should be removed yd gent
ly pressing each leaf between the folds of a
dry towel, before bringing to the table, then
cut up with hard boiled egg, or little
cold corned beef and serve with the dress
ieg, and when eaten with boiled potatoes or
bread l know of no better or more whole
some breakfast or dinner for hot day.
Lettuce should be in every farmers gar
den, ready for the table from Juue LIST to
October. 1t needs only small patch of
land to grow it, but it must be very rich,
and the first lot will come from plants raised
in hot bed, which can be had of any mar
ket gardener for less than cent apiece
these will be followed by the produce of the
seed sown out of doors in April, and to
keep up succession, successive sowings
should be made every ten or fifteen days.
II the weather is dry, water the bed free
ly, which can easily be done in the evening,
as only small area will suffice: if the
weather is very hot and sunny, the lettuce
will do better under the partial shade of a
lath frame. with laths nailed across, leaving
two-inch spaces between. This, however is
not essential if the land is very rich and
kept moist.
Lettuce usually sells at wholesale in Bos-
ton through the summer, at about Is cents
per dozen, and, since the plants are grown
quite thckly, il is tolerably profitable. The
method is simply to sow the seed in drills,
IA iucneS apart, cultivate With the SCuftle
hoe, and thin the plants TO six or eight inch
es apart in the rows; they will head in
about eight weeks from seed in summer.
The black seeded Tennisball is the best va
riety for out of door growth; it is very ten
der, and will head in hot weather if kept
moist, otherwise it will run to seed without
heading. In very dry weather, lettuce seed
sometimes comes up with difficulty; in such
times il is better to water the land thorough
ly the day before sowing; then Immediately
after sowing, mulch the surface with light
covering of hay or straw, which must be re-
moved directly when the seed breaks
ground, if the mulch is lief. on too long the
plants will come up weakly, and will burn
off in the hot sun. A little care, however.
Will enable any one to succeed every time
The land occupied by the early lots NAV be
used afterwards for another sowing of let
tuce, or better for celery, melons, or some
late crop.
In October, indeed in September, lettuce
gives place to the more delicious celery
which is generally preferred for winter
salad.-N. Z. Farmer.