of operations—a plan by which not even a particle of light, ever is or shall be lost! Comets have by some been supposed to regulate the electrical relations between the sun and the planets; and by others, to supply the loss which the sun sustains by emitting rays of light and heat. I am inclined to believe that the agency and influence of induction and attraction are universal and complete; that a reciprocal and harmonious interchange is for ever going on between the sun and the planets, the sun itself being the "one great principle" which operates, and "connects together all the phenomena of the material world." SECTION II. NATURAL HISTORY AND CULTIVATION OF ESCULENT VEGETABLES. PART I. OF THE FUSIFORM, OR SPINDLE-ROOTED TRIBES. Subject 1. THE RED BEET:-Beta vulgaris. Chenopódea. Class v. Order ii. Pentandria Digynia, of Linnæus. 71. The red Beet is a biennial, with large, oblong, succulent leaves, of a dark red or purple colour. In the second year, it sends up an erect stem, bearing greenish flowers, which have no corolla, * A few days subsequently to the completion of the foregoing section, I met with a notice in some of the public prints of Professor Leslie's Theory of the internal constitution of the Earth, wherein he states the opinion, founded on experiment, that the globe must be hollow or cavernous: the central cavern being of necessity filled with a substance of vast repulsive power; to which cavern the surface is as it were, a mere crust or shell, bearing but a small proportion to the diameter of the sphere. There is but one substance which appears to possess the necessary elasticity; and that substance is light in its most concentrated state, "which, when embodied, constitutes elementary heat or fire." It may be impossible to prove or disprove the truth of the theory. Be this as it may, it by no means impugns the hypothesis which I have advocated: on the contrary, it is in complete unison with the views I entertain of the universal agency of induction. Assuming then, for the sake of argument, that Professor Leslie's theory is correct, and that the centre of the globe is cavernous and replete with condensed light, "shining with intense refulgence and overpowering splendour"; I still insist that, that light is derived-not intrinsic: that its source is the sun; its nature electrical; and that it is a result of the electrising process before described;-the centre of the earth being the depository of a laborated fluid, destined to perform the most important offices in the economy of nature. but a calyx of one leaf, cut into five segments, it is fleshy at the base, and permanent; and in it the kidney-shaped seeds are embedded, the segments closing over them. The root is of a deep red colour, and sometimes a foot or more in length, and from two to four inches in breadth. "The red beet," says Loudon, "is a native of the seacoast of the south of Europe, and was cultivated in England as far back as the year 1656." The roots, to be rendered easy of digestion should be boiled till perfectly tender, when they may be eaten warm as a dinner vegetable; or they may be sliced and used with salads; or if the slices be covered with vinegar, they form a delicious kind of pickle, of a most beautiful colour; and which will keep good for several days. 72. Varieties and soil. There is only one species, but about seven varieties, the principal of which are,— 1. The long rooted, which should be sown in deep sandy soil. 2. The short rooted, purple-leaved. 3. The green-leaved, red-rooted, requiring a depth of soil equal to that for the long rooted:-all the varieties are best cultivated in ground that is deep, very fine, rather sandy, and dry; rich and mellow, but by no means manured with fresh rank dung. 4. Beta cycla, or silver beet; the leaves only are eaten as spinach. 73. Sowing and culture.-Beet should be sown annually, about the middle or latter end of March, or early in April, if designed for autumnal use; but in the beginning of May, if intended to come in the next spring. Let the ground be manured with light, sandy compost, but never, as has been said, with rank dung; or, what is far better, trench the plot eighteen inches deep, and lay three inches of strong manure at the bottom of each trench, to attract the tap root, and bring it down in a perpendicular direction. In filling the trenches, remove large stones, and pulverize the ground, making it as fine as possible; do this a month or two before sowing. At the time of sowing, set out the beds according to the number of the rows required. Stretch the line, and draw an even drill with the point of the hoe, about an inch and a half deep; drop two or three seeds either at regular distances of eight or ten inches in the drill; or drop single seeds about two inches apart all along the drill; then draw the earth which the hoe raised, back again over the seeds, and press it down firmly and hard, with the spade. Proceed thus, making rows one foot apart for the smaller sorts, or eighteen inches for the long rooted:-three or four rows will be sufficient for one bed. Cut the edges of the bed evenly by the line; each edge to be at least nine inches from the outermost drill; and then, form little foot paths on each side of the bed. When the plants come up, and make some little progress, thin them out, so as to leave only one of the strongest in each spot, and eight or ten inches apart. Beta cycla will require yard spaces. Beet will transplant; but the operation appears to reduce the size of the root. Keep the rows free from weeds by flat hoeing between the drills. Some of the roots may be ready for use in September; and in October or November, dig up the beets; cut off the leaves a little above the crown, and let the roots be preserved in dry sand, for use during winter. Be careful not to injure or cut the roots, because they bleed much; and it is for this reason, that the leaves should not be cut close to the tops. From Sir H. Davy's analysis, it appears that 1000 parts of the red-beet contain 148 parts of nutritive matter; of which 14 parts are mucilage, or starch; 121, saccharine matter, or sugar; and 13, gluten, or albumen. 74. To save the seed, transplant a few of the best roots; place them in a convenient spot apart from the varieties of the species: they will flower the second year; and the flower stem should be tied up to stakes till the seed be ripe. Cut down the stalk, lay it on a cloth exposed to the sun, or under an airy shed, till perfectly dry: then, separate the seed vessels, and preserve them in paper bags, in a cool room, free from damp. These directions will apply equally to carrots and parsnips. Beet seed, if dry, will germinate when eight or ten years old; but the seed of the two latter, should not be trusted after the first year. Subject 2. THE CARROT. Daucus carota. 75. The Carrot is an umbelliferous plant; its seeds are ellipticoblong, compressed transversely; with four rows of flat prickles, and rough intermediate ribs; calyx obsolete; petals inversely heartshaped, unequal; flowers separated. It is a biennial, a native of this country, growing plentifully by road sides; and from the appearance of the umbels, which sometimes become concave, the the flower has obtained the name of "bird's nest." The leaves are alternate, on broad, concave footstalks, bi-pinnate, cut, narrow, and distinctly hairy: the root is of a red-yellow, or pale straw-colour. A white variety has lately appeared. 76. The chief garden varieties are, the early horn; a short, small root, for early crops; which may be sown from the last fortnight in February to the middle of March, if dry, open weather occur. These first sowings may require a shelter of haulm or fern leaves, occasion ally, in the event of severe frost, and cutting wind. The second variety is the orange or long carrot, for the main crop; it is to be sown from about the second week in March to the third week in April; these two varieties are sufficient. Succession sowings for drawing as young carrots throughout the year, may be made in May, June, July, and August. 77. Culture and Soil.-The seeds being armed with forked hairs, and clinging together, should be mixed with an equal quantity of sand, a little moistened, and rubbed between the hands, in order to detach the seeds from one another. For a bed of thirty feet long, and four and a half feet wide, one ounce of seed may suffice. Choose a warm border for the very early sowings, but for the main and succession crops, let the beds be in the open ground. Proceed in every respect according to the directions given for the beet root; but the drills need not be quite so deep, or further asunder than ten inches. Scatter the seeds evenly along each drill; and do this in calm weather, as they are very light, and liable to be dispersed by the wind. To allow for the destruction which the fly may occasion, sow the seeds pretty thickly. When the plants have attained two or three inches in height, thin them with the hand; those that are intended to be drawn as young carrots to four or five inches apart; but those that are to stand for the main crop, to eight inches. Keep the plants free from weeds during their growth, by occasional hoeings with the dutch hoe. Carrots prefer a light, sandy soil, and this should be prepared eighteen inches deep, with the manure at bottom. It should be as fine as possible, and free from roots and stones, as these interrupt the perpendicular descent of the carrot, and force it to branch, or take a spiral growth. Take up the roots late in autumn, and keep them in dry sand. According to Sir H. Davy's analysis, 1000 parts of carrot contain only 98 parts of nutritive matters, of which 3 parts are mucilage or starch, and 95 saccharine matter or sugar. Subject 3. THE PARSNIP. Pastinaca sativa. Umbellifera. Class v. Order ii. Pentandria Digynia, of Linnæus. 78. The Parsnip is an umbelliferous plant, a native of England, and, like the carrot, a biennial. The seeds are elliptic-ovate; calyx very minute, obsolete; petals yellow, lanceolate, involute and equal; flowers regular, uniform, perfect. The garden parsnip has large, smooth, pinnated leaves, of a light green colour: the roots are white or cream colour; mild, sweet, and aromatic. 79. Culture and Soil.-The directions for beet-root and carrot are equally applicable to the parsnip; the seed must be new, that of the last year's production. It may be dropped into holes an inch deep, made along a line with a blunt dibber, and then covered with the earth. The period of sowing is comprised between the last week of February, and the first of May; but the medium is the best; the weather ought to be dry, and the ground in a free, open condition. Make the holes nine inches apart one way, and twelve inches another, and drop four or five seeds into each hole, to be thinned out to one strong plant, when the plants have attained two or three inches in height. If parsnips be sown in drills, by scattering the seed in the usual way, first draw the earth over the seeds, then press it firmly and evenly with the flat of the spade, and finally rake the beds level and smooth with a fine-toothed rake. 80. If the ground be naturally stiff and clogging, let it be well trenched in the preceding autumn, and blended as truly as possible with light sandy compost; then set the ground in ridges, to be mellowed and broken up by the frost. When the sowing time is arrived, try the following method, which is equally applicable to beet and carrot, as to parsnips. Level the ridges, and dig the ground piece by piece, as directed for beet; then strain the line very tight, and, with a strong iron-shod dibber, or round-pointed crow-bar, make holes nine inches apart along the line; work the tool round, till each hole be three inches broad at the top, and of depth sufficient to admit the root of a well grown parsnip quite up to its top: that is, supposing the weak end of the root to have been trimmed off: each hole then will be full twelve inches deep. Fill these holes one by one, with light sandy compost: press it till it feel moderately firm in the hole. Exactly in the centre of this compost, make a smaller hole half an inch deep; drop in four or five seeds, and when one row is sown, dig and prepare another space of ground, and make another set of holes by the line, twelve or fourteen inches distant from the first. As each row is finished, fill up the holes with sandy compost, and press it firmly with the spade, then rake the ground even. The evident object of this mode of proceeding, is to give a perpendicular direction to the roots through the light sandy compost, surrounded as it is by the stiffer ground of the bed, which thus forms a kind of firm sheath to each individual root. The plan is reasonable, and it has been repeatedly and successfully tried. The trouble is considerable at first, but the distances are so true, that, with the exception of the work of thinning out all but one, and that the strongest plant, the Dutch hoe will effect all that need be done in future, with scarcely any trouble or loss of time. |