Beans.
There are two kinds of green beans in the market, the string or snap bean and the shell bean. String beans come from the South about the first of April. They are picked in Northern gardens about the first of June, and they last until about the middle of July. They should be green, the beans just beginning to form, and should snap crisply. If wilted or yellow they have been picked too long.
Shell Beans.
Shell beans come in May, but are not picked at the North before June. They are good until the last of September. There is a great variety of shell beans, but the Lima is considered the best When fresh, shell beans are dry and smooth; but if old, they look dull and sticky.
Celery.
Celery is found in the market from August to April, but is in its prime and is cheapest from November to the first of March. Before the frost comes it is slightly bitter, and after the first of March it grows tough and stringy. Unless one has a good cellar in which to bury celery, it is best to purchase as one has need from time to time. Celery is a delicious salad. It is also considered one of the best vegetables that a nervous, rheumatic or neuralgic person can take. The heads should be close and white, and the stalks should break off crisply. Save the trimmings for soups.
Lettuce.
Lettuce is found in the market all the year round, being now raised in hot houses in winter. It then costs two and three times as much as in summer; still, it is not an expensive salad. There are a number of varieties having much the same general appearance. That which comes in round heads, with leaves like a shell, is the most popular in this country, because it can be served so handsome. There is another kind, high in favor in Paris and in some localities in this country for its tenderness and delicate flavor, but not liked by marketmen, because it will not bear rough handling. The tune will come, however, when there will be such a demand for this species that all first-class provision dealers will keep it. The French call it Romaine, and in this country it is sometimes called Roman lettuce. It does not head. The leaves are long and not handsome whole; but one who uses the lettuce never wishes for any other. Lettuce should be crisp and green, and be kept until used in a very cold place--in an ice chest if possible.
Mushrooms.
Mushrooms are in the market at all seasons. In summer, when they are found in pastures, they are comparatively (fifty or seventy-five cents a pound), but in winter they are high priced. Being, however, very light, a pound goes a great way. The French canned mushrooms are safe, convenient and cheap. One can, costing forty cents, is enough for a sauce for at least ten people. There is nothing else among vegetables which gives such a peculiarly delicious flavor to meat sauces. Mushrooms are used also as a relish for breakfast and tea, or as an entrée. In gathering from the fields one should exercise great care not to collect poisonous toadstools, which are in appearance much like mushrooms, and are often mistaken for these by people whose knowledge of vegetables has been gained solely by reading. The confusion of the two things has sometimes resulted fatally. There can hardly be danger if purchases are made of reliable provision dealers.