constant as well as sufficient temperature: when a forced crop has made
some progress a check will be fatal to success. The beginner should
acquire experience with Rhubarb and Sea Kale, then with Asparagus and
Mushrooms and Dwarf French Beans, and so on to 'higher heights' of this
branch of practical gardening.

==Artichokes, Globe==, are not quite hardy, and must be protected with
litter.

==Asparagus== beds to be heavily manured, if not already done, but the
beds need not be dug. Be content to lay the manure on, and the rains
will wash the stimulant down to the roots in due time. In gardens near
the coast seaweed is the best of manure for Asparagus, and the use of
salt can then be dispensed with.

==Beans, Broad==, may be sown in frames, and towards the end of the month
in open quarters. For early crops select the Longpod varieties. Sow on
ground deeply dug and well manured.

==Cabbage== may be planted out at any time when weather permits, provided
you possess, or can obtain, the plants; and it is of the utmost
importance to secure them from a reliable source, or varieties may be
planted which will in a few weeks send up flower-stems instead of
forming tender hearts. At every season of the year vacant plots should
be kept going with a few breadths of Cabbage. With our variable climate
they may be acceptable, even in the height of summer, if there has been
a hard run upon other vegetables, or some important crop has failed
outright.

==Cauliflower== may be sown on a gentle hot-bed, or in a pan in the
greenhouse, or even in a frame, to make a start for planting out in
March or April.

==Cress==, to be enjoyed, must be produced from a constant succession of
small but frequent sowings. All the sorts are good, but different in
flavour, and they should be used only while young and tender. Sow at
intervals of a few days in pans, as in the case of Mustard, until it is
possible to cultivate in the open air, and then give a shady position
during summer on a mellow and rather moist soil.

==Cucumbers== are never ready too soon to meet the demand in early spring.
They are grown in houses more or less adapted to their requirements, and
also in frames over hot-beds. At this time of year, however, frames are
somewhat troublesome to manage, and in trying weather they are a little
hazardous, although later in the season there is no difficulty whatever
with them. For the present, therefore, we shall confine our remarks to
hous