Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-04-20

purpose it is grown under cover in total
darkness in order to blanch it to suit the
delicate taste of Partisan epicures; when
thus raised it takes precedence Of the
lettuce in the markets.
Every one who ever visited the country
IN the spring has brought away, along
with poetic memories of flowery glades
and SUCH an abiding recollection of poke
salad-a dish that. were it possible to
raise 1T profitably. would run asparagus
out of business. 1t is prepared from the
hrst tender shoots of the poke-berry
bush. with whose dark-red berries, In
later months. when it has grown to a
rank height Of six feet the country chill
dren are wont to paint themselves as
Indians. AS the shoot Is only edible for
few days after it pushes through the
soil. when it is but few inches long, the
season In which the poke sprout may be
gathered is limited to few weeks In the
middle of the springtime.
Its flavor. when boiled with well cured
chunk Of bacon. is that of asparagus,
glorified. Besides having the delicate
SAVIOR of that plant. it has a rich. satis-
tying freshness of its own that Is most
delectable to the palate faded with WIN
dish that one feels he could make an
entire meal from. The man who doesn't
enthuse over his first taste of poke salad
is rare indeed.
Lambs quarter, or pigweed, as It is
sometimes unpoetically labeled, is an
other so-called weed popular among coun-
try folk as a green" 1t is. perhaps. the
most widely known of any of these wild
America Europe and Asia. Like the
poke sprout. the young shoot is cut when
about six or eight inches high. The
lambs quarter is related to the beet and
spinach family. and when used as a pot
herb. much resembles the latter.
I'm the vicinity of Washington there
grows a plant that looks like a variety
of mustard. though the botanical experts
aver they are no kin. It is called the
winter cress and is SO popular as a win
ter salad that Of late years some of the
thrifty Italian truck farmers in the
suburbs have devoted themselves to its
culture and offer 1t for sale in the city
markets. 1t bears no resemblance what
ever to the watercress either in flavor or
appearance, The advantage possessed
by this potherb is that 1t Is such a late
conner, and, hence. late goer, that 1t
survives in fresh, green state suitable
for the table long after others Of its kind
have faded and gone.
Another weed popular for edible pur-
poses is the cowslip or. to give 1t is more
disnified name. the marsh marigold. This
plant fourishes principally in the north
ern states, where it is used as q potherb
mentioned heretofore. The liking for
this plant differs widely. but those who
do like 1t consider it superior to any other
form of salad.
Every one who ever fed 'hawgs" down
south remembers the delight with which
the pigs seized upon the "pusley." While
it is rarely eaten in the south, 1t Is a
favorite with the rural epicures Of the
north and west. 1t is the most succulent
of all the weeds used as potherbs. The
aristocratic name of this plant by the
way is ''purslane," and IL has the honor
of being the only vegetable whose name Is
handed down from the hoary past Of
India through its Sanscrit name. The
slightly acid taste 1t possesses. in the
opinion of many, adds greatly to its value
as salad
But 1t is to the discovery. chasing to its
habitat and importing Of strange vege-
tables from strange lands that the Agri-
cultural Department chiefly addresses it
self in this behalf-a hunt which has re-
suited in the discovery OF many an edi
BILE sort of growing thing novel in ap-
pearance to a citizen OF the United
States as the uncouth native farmer who
raised the queer vegetable. From every
part Of the earth the department has
collected its specimens, unlimited by lati-
tude or longitude And In every corner
OF the earth It has its experts prying and
ferreting and hunting down anything that
looks like vegetable that may. per-
chance, be developed into something
good to eat for the folks at home.
Deferring. for moment, the details Of
the admirable system whereby the Agri-
cultural Department not only acquires
these novel vegetables from the four cor
ners Of the earth, but also propagates
them throughout the country, an inspec-
ton OF some of the most important OF
these vegetable immigrants will be OF in
terest
Principal among them is the dasheen. a
root or tuber product SO resembling the
Irish potato in many respects that 1t has
been nicknamed by irreverent ones of the
Agricultural Department the Chinese
Murphy" The dasheen. however, is not
limited to China. 1t is a root product that
grows in semi-tropical countries through
out the globe. In the Hawaiian Islands.
ii is known as the taro and from 1t 10
made the acidulous dish called poi"
which there takes the place filed by
bread among Caucasian peoples
The best specimens Of the dasheen,
however. have come from the West In
dian Island of Trinidad. and II is from
these that Uncle Sam is making his ex-
periments and sending his samples broad
cast throughout the country. It was In
this locality also that the name Is SUD-
posed to have originated. It has a native
Irish ring to it, but there's nothing Irish
about It. According to one of the assist
ants OF Dr. David Fairchild, chief plant
explorer In the bureau of plant industry,
the name Is q corruption OF the words.