The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-05-10
CauIiGOwer.

The flower of the vegetable
Garden-My Lord Bacon was a genuine
lover of a garden, else he could not, would
not, have said "a garden is the purest of
human pleasures; it is the greatest re-
freshment to the spirit of man." The
talented lord is reputed to have been a
very bad man in some respects, but he
could not have been teetotally bad. 1t is
quite probable that he was not half as
bad as his enemies tried to make it ap-
pear. Anyhow, no one will deny that he
was man of intelligence and true low
er OF nature. and he was very excellent
gardener. Being a lawyer 1t was quite
possible that he was not altogether what
he should have been, but in view of his
qualities as a gardener, and for the sake
of the pretty things he has said about the
garden and the pleasure that 1t anords
many mortals. even beset with the cares
Of worldly affairs let us accord him at
least a modicum of praise and respect
for his very good taste. We will not act
amiss in emulatng him in everything that
pertains to the development and encour-
agement of the delightful art of garden
ing. Truly, though it may tire the body
the work of the garden, whether II con-
ssts of flowers or vegetables, is a splen-
did "refreshment' to the spirit of man.
What refreshing sleep! What refreshing
thirst and appetite attend upon gardening
well done! There is a sufficient blending
of the prosaic and the poetical in It's work
and results to please everybody
We are just in from setting out our eau
Hfower, a crop that everyone, II seems,
does not grow to project satisfaction.
Well wherever there is a failure there IS
49, Or, ffri
we have noticed in recent issues that sew
eral correspondents have been asking
wherefore?
Caulihower. like celery and strawberry,
is a very thirsty plant. 1t must nave
water and plenty of it at particular time
especially, else it will altogether refuse
to produce that very excellent flower, "
for which the very learned. but exceeding
ly gluttonous, DIR. Johnson had such a
prediction as TO lead him to remark that
''of all the flowers that l know, give me
the caulifower." Certainly an excellent
vegetable, but not as easily grown as a
radish or squash. On dry, thirsty upland
with no water facilities il is useless to
attempt its cultivation. Caulifiower likes
moisture above and below. and, as with
celery and strawberry, it is only the eul-
tivator who has control of water who need
attempt it's culture for market. But in the
home garden it is usually feasible to grow
a few hundred cauinowers through the
combined means of deep preparation,
muIching. and one or two waterings given
at the critical period of growth
The Ideal and the Early SNOWFALL are
the best varieties, and the seeds should
be sown in cold frames, just about four
weeks before the plants are needed to be
set out in the open For the early crop
stocky, well-grown plants should be set
out as soon as possible after the severe
weather is over. If the soil is not natu-
rally rich enough, it should be made so
by an application of some good fertilizer
top-dressed about the plants-say 800
pounds of bone dust, dust, not meaD and
$50 pounds nitrate of soda and 200 pounds of
kainit Cor its equivalent in other potash
salts. This much for an acre, and it
should be spread evenly between the rows.
Then two or three borrowings or hoeings
should be given to work in the fertilizer
before the mulch is put on. Where only
a few hundred plants are grown each
plant should receive about two ounces of
fertilizer of such a compound as above
stated What cultivation is given should
be shallow.