flavour of well-blanched
Endive suits most palates that have had experience of salads, and of the
salutary properties of the plant we have a hint in its close relation to
the Chicory.

The selection of sorts is a question of importance, because the handsome
curled varieties that make the best appearance on the table, and might
be regarded as ornaments if they were not edible, are the very finest
for salads, being tender, with a fresh nutty flavour. The broad-leaved
sorts are not so well adapted for salads as for stews, and they take the
place of Lettuces when the latter are not available for soups and
ragouts. However, when an emergency occurs, the curled varieties will be
found suitable for cooking, and the broad-leaved for salading, and
therefore there need be no waste where one sort predominates.

==Soil==.--A difficulty common to Endive culture may be got over in the
way advised for Celeriac. The plant requires a light, dry, sandy soil;
and a portion, at least, of the crop is expected to stand through the
winter. Thus on a heavy soil there is a prospect of failure in respect
of the late crop, but that is obviated by adopting a made bed--one of
smallish dimensions being sufficient to accommodate a large stock of
plants. Select an open spot, make a foundation of any hard rubbish that
is at hand, and on this put one to two feet of sandy soil. This will
form a raised bed of a kind exactly suited to the plant, and will cost
but little as compared with its ultimate value. If regularly dressed
with manure, and otherwise well managed, the bed will supply Endive in
winter and other salads in summer, or it may be cropped with Dwarf
Beans, which can be removed in August to make way for the usual planting
of Endive. Where the soil is naturally light and dry no such preparation
is needed, but Endive does not come to perfection without food, and
therefore the soil should be rich and deeply dug.

==Sowing and Transplanting==.--The seed may be sown as early as March, in
a moderate heat, but the latter part of April is early enough for most
purposes, and the main sowings are made in June. Later sowings may
follow in July and August. But the June sowing is the most important, as
by a little careful management it will supply a few early heads and many
late ones. Sow in shallow drills six inches apart, and when the plants
are an inch high draw the most forward, and prick them out on a bed of
rich light soil in the same way as Celery,