Chou de Burghley is of great value for spring sowing, and will be
found very useful during autumn and early in winter. This vegetable
is sometimes called Cabbage Broccoli, on account of the miniature
Broccoli which are formed among its inner leaves towards autumn.
Couve Tronchuda, known also as Braganza Marrow and Portugal Cabbage,
should be sown in March, April, and May for succession.
Savoy Cabbage is sown in March or April, and given the same treatment
as other Cabbage. Its flavour is much improved if the plants are
mellowed by frost before being cut for use.
Red Dutch is used almost solely for pickling. Its cultivation is
precisely the same as the white varieties.
Cacalia.--Hardy annuals, remarkable for their awkward-looking stems
and discoloured leaves. They grow best in a mixture of sandy loam,
brick rubbish, and decomposed dung, well reduced. They require very
little water while growing, and the pots must be well drained.
Cuttings, laid by for a few days to dry, strike readily. Flower in
June. Height, 1-1/2 ft.
Cactus.--A sandy loam with brick rubbish and a little peat or rotten
manure suits them. Echinopsis is a good plant for cool houses or
windows. During the summer it should be syringed over-head with tepid
water, and weak soot water should be given three times a week. It is
propagated by off-sets planted in sand, also by slicing off a portion
from the top of the plant and placing it in light, rich, porous loam.
Caladiums.--Favourite hothouse foliage plants, generally grown in peat
soil at a temperature of 70 degrees. They require plenty of light
while growing, and to be kept moderately moist at the roots. As the
leaves lose colour less water should be given, and during winter they
must be kept almost dry. When fresh growth begins, shake them out of
their pots and put them into fresh mould. In syringing the plants use
nothing but the purest rainwater, but the less the leaves are wetted
the better for the appearance of the plants. They may be increased by
dividing the root stock into as many pieces as there are crowns. These
should be planted in very rich, sandy soil, an inch or so below the
surface.
Calamintha Grandiflora.--This hardy herbaceous plant has
sweetly-fragrant foliage, and bears rose-coloured flowers from May
to September. Any loamy soil suits it, and it is easily increased by
suckers. Height, 1 ft.
Calampelis.--A species of half-hardy climbing plants of great merit.
They are elegant when in flower, and will endure the open air. They
should be trained to a south wall, or over a vase, or up a pillar.
Any light loamy soil suits them, and they are easily increased by
cuttings. Flower in July. Height, 10 ft. (See also "Eccremocarpus.")