Plant in rows 1 ft. apart, with 2 1/2 or 3 ft. between the rows. Water and cultivate freely. For Winter use store same as cabbage, keep from freezing.
Uses. The heads may be cut into convenient sizes and served like lettuce, but is we think, more delicious, when cooked like cabbage and served up in any of the many ways that cabbage is.
Sea Kale
An easily grown vegetable, especially valuable when forced during the winter months.
To raise from seed sow in April, lift the roots in Fall and plant out the following Spring in rows 2 ft. apart.
Sea Kale needs well dug, well manured soil and plenty of water. We recommend planting roots (3 year old preferably). Cover the bed with light blanching material, 7 or 8 ins. deep and cut same as Asparagus (Coal ashes is what is usually used for Seakale). It should be ready to cut in 6 or 8 weeks. To get it early, plant 3 roots in hills 4 ft. apart. Place an old bucket or box over the hill and cover all over with fresh stable manure. The heat from the manure will make cutting possible in 2 or 3 weeks; 4 or 6 buckets or boxes may be used and transferred to other hills when first hills are through. (Roots can be procured in the Fall.)
Forcing Inside. Plant 3 to 5 roots in an 8 in. pot and invert a similar pot over it and cover the hole in the top. Place under bench in conservatory or Greenhouse, or in a warm basement where 50 or 60 degrees may be maintained. Water every day. Cutting should be made in from 18 to 21 days, according to heat maintained.
Use. Seakale is considered a great delicacy, the young shoots when cooked are more tender than the youngest Asparagus. They are usually cooked whole and served with white (cream) sauce as Asparagus, or may be chopped up and cooked like celery and served in the same manner. It has a nice buttery flavor of its own, that has to be tasted to be appreciated, a flavor that will take with the household. We do not hesitate to say that if once grown the demand will soon exceed the supply.