strips laid across, which can remain until the plants are well above ground, when it should be removed, the plants sprinkled with tobacco dust, air slacked lime, ashes or common plaster, and a covering of mosquito netting be substituted for the muslin, which will admit light, air and sunshine, yet be a partial shade, and will help to protect the plants from insects. This cover may be removed during rainy weather, and, if you please, every night to give the plants the benefit of the dew.

"I have decided objections to artificial watering of seed-beds, especially when the seed is first sown or in the early stages of growth of the plants, and this may generally be avoided by following the directions just given; but when circumstances may seem to demand otherwise, let the bed be prepared and in the afternoon thoroughly saturated, and toward evening the seed may be sown and covered as above described, but never water the bed after the seed has been sown until the plants are well up, for this has a tendency to pack the surface and cause it to bake and prevent proper germinating of the seed. After the plants are fairly above ground, light waterings at evening may be given, but must be avoided if possible.

"I have not given these precautions for sowing seed in September for wintering over, for the reason that at that season of the year we are comparatively free from insects and drouths."

WHEN TO SOW.

The time for sowing will depend of course on the locality and variety. At the North, half early varieties, intended for the fall crop, are usually sown and set out about the same time as late cabbage. In Western Michigan, in latitude 43°, I have found that Early Paris sown about May 12, and set out about the 20th of June, begins to head in September, and forms its main crop in October, about the time desired. In the latitude of New York City the time for setting out the main crop is from June 20 to the 1st of August. Plants set as late as the 1st of August are intended to head just before winter, and must be of the earliest varieties. The large late varieties, like Autumn Giant, if used at all, must be started early and set out not later than the first of June, as they require the entire season.

Several kinds are often sown to form a succession, but where one has tested a variety and found it adapted to his needs, it is often quite as well to rely upon it almost entirely, and make two or three sowings for a succession if desired. Even a single sowing, well timed, will generally furnish cuttings through the most favorable part of the season. If the seed is of the best quality, and the plants are of uniform size, and all set at the same time, neither too early nor too late, on soil of uniform character, they will in a good season form most of their heads within a short space of time, sometimes within a week; but generally in a given sowing, a few heads will form very early, then the bulk of the crop will come on during three or four weeks, while the remainder will hang on until late, perhaps until winter. No other crop is so much affected in time of maturity by the character of the season as the cauliflower, and even the most experienced growers sometimes fail in getting them to head at the time desired.

The time for starting the plants for the early crop in the North is in February, and the method is described in full in another chapter. They should be set out, as stated, as soon as heavy freezing is past, say about the middle of April. The most unfavorable time of any, and yet the time when the inexperienced are most likely to set them, is about the middle of May, for early varieties set then usually head in August when it is seldom that heads can be obtained of good quality.

PREPARING THE GROUND.

Land intended for cauliflowers should be plowed deeply, as the cauliflower is a deep feeder and delights in a rich, cool subsoil; in fact, with no other plant of the cabbage family is a deep soil so important. The manure, of whatever kind, should be mainly spread upon the ground and plowed under, a smaller amount, in a finely divided state, being harrowed in upon the surface. The plowing should be done at least a month before the plants are to be set, and the land kept well harrowed or cultivated until that time in order to retain the moisture in the soil, and put it in the best condition for the growth of the plants.

SETTING THE PLANTS.

When the time comes for setting the plants it is a good plan to go over the surface with a planker in order to smooth it off, so the marking can be nicely done. This also packs the ground somewhat, so that the plants can be set more firmly. The land may be then marked out, crosswise first, three feet apart, then lengthwise three feet apart for Dwarf Erfurt and all small growing kinds, and four feet apart for Algiers and other large varieties. These are suitable distances for the late crop in ordinary cases, but where land is cheap, and little manure used, except sod turned under, four by four feet is none too much room for the large varieties. The early crop, on the other hand, which is always heavily manured, is sometimes set with the rows as close as two feet apart, and the plants twenty inches apart in the rows. The small size of the heads resulting from close planting is no actual loss, for small heads, if of good quality, are more popular than large ones, and bring a higher price in proportion to their size. The greatest danger from too close setting of the main crop is that the plants may fail to head at all. It is for this reason that cauliflowers are usually set farther apart than cabbages.

The best time to set the plants is just before or after a rain, but they may be set at any time if the soil has been kept damp by frequent cultivation. In dry, clear weather the planting should be done only toward the close of the day. If it should be necessary to apply water at the time of setting, it should be thoroughly done, not less than a quart being placed in each hole which is to receive a plant. Water should never be applied after the plant is set unless loose earth is afterwards thrown over the place, for the compact surface left after the water has been absorbed dries out more rapidly than before.

The plants to be set should not be too large or they will be liable to button, especially if the conditions are in any way unfavorable for growth. If large plants must be used extra pains should be taken in setting, in order that there may be as little check in their growth as possible. With cauliflowers, as with cabbages, large plants are the easiest to make live, but, for the reason stated, it is less desirable to use them.

Setting the plants in shallow trenches, after the manner of celery, is sometimes practised in garden culture. This places the roots where the soil is cool and moist and enables the plants to be watered to good advantage. This method is mainly used in early spring planting, when, besides its convenience in irrigation, it also serves to protect the plants from cold winds. Planting between ridges, as elsewhere described, serves the same purpose of protection. In either case the surface is gradually brought to a level as the plants are cultivated.

CULTIVATION.

In cultivation everything depends on keeping up a steady, vigorous growth, for if the plants are checked in their growth, they are liable either to form small heads prematurely, or to continue their growth so late as to fail to head at all. Level cultivation is usually practiced, the same as in ordinary field crops. Drawing the earth to the stems, as sometimes recommended and practiced