the kinds, if important, is certainly not
permanent, so long as they are offered in the form of seeds for
propagation.

Mr. Grayson, the originator of this variety, produced a hundred sprouts,
the aggregate weight of which was forty-two pounds,--the largest ever
raised in Britain.

GERMAN.

Asperge d'Allemagne. _Vil._

This variety very nearly resembles the Giant Purple-topped. It is,
however, considered a little earlier, and the top is deeper colored.

GIANT PURPLE-TOP.

Dutch. Red-top.

Sprout white; the top, as it breaks ground, purple; size very large,
sometimes measuring an inch and three-fourths in diameter, but greatly
affected by soil and cultivation.

A hundred sprouts of this variety have been produced which weighed
twenty-five pounds.

GREEN-TOP.

This variety, when grown under the same conditions as the Giant
Purple-top, is generally smaller or more slender. The top of the
sprout, and the scales on the sides, are often slightly tinged with
purple. The plant, when full grown, is perceptibly more green than that
of the Giant Purple-top. From most nursery-beds, plants of both
varieties will probably be obtained, with every intervening grade of
size and color.

* * * * *

CARDOON.

Chardon. Chardoon. Cynara cardunculus.

In its general character and appearance, the Cardoon resembles the
Artichoke. Its full size is not attained until the second year, when it
is "truly a gigantic herbaceous plant," of five or six feet in height.
The flowers, which are smaller than those of the artichoke, are produced
in July and August of the second year, and are composed of numerous
small blue florets, enclosed by somewhat fleshy, pointed scales. The
seeds are oblong, a little flattened, of a grayish or grayish-green
color, spotted and streaked with deep brown; and, when perfectly grown,
are similar in size and form to those of the apple. About six hundred
are contained in an ounce; and they retain their vitality seven years.

_Soil, Propagation, and Culture._--The best soil for the Cardoon is a
light and deep but not over-rich loam. It is raised from seed; which, as
the plant is used in the first year of its growth and is liable to be
injured by the winter, should be sown annually, although the Cardoon is
really a perennial. It succeeds best when sown where the plants are to
remain; for, if removed, the plants recover slowly, are more liable to
run to seed, and, besides