five days. When planted and grown in summer, the crop
will ripen in eleven weeks; and plants from seeds sown as late as the
first of August will generally afford an abundant supply of tender pods
from the middle to the close of September.

The Early China is very generally disseminated, and is one of the most
popular of the Dwarf varieties. It is hardy and productive; but the
young pods, though succulent and tender, are inferior to those of some
other varieties. The seeds, green or ripe, are thin-skinned, mealy, and
mild flavored.

EARLY RACHEL.

A low-growing, branching variety, twelve to fifteen inches high; flowers
white; the pods are five inches and a half long, green while young,
becoming paler or greenish-yellow as they approach maturity, cream-white
when ripe, and contain five seeds.

Planted early in the season, the variety will blossom in about seven
weeks; and, in eight weeks, the young pods will be fit for use. Pods for
shelling may be plucked in ten weeks, and the crop will ripen in eighty
days. For the green pods, the seeds may be planted till the middle or
twentieth of July.

The ripe seed is yellowish-brown, white at one of the ends,
kidney-shaped, often abruptly shortened, five-eighths of an inch long,
and a fourth of an inch thick: nearly two thousand are contained in a
quart.

The Early Rachel is hardy, and moderately productive, and, as an early
string-bean, may be desirable; but as a shell-bean, green or dry, it is
of little value. In common with many other early sorts cultivated as
string-beans, the pods, though crisp and tender at first, soon become
too tough and parchment-like for use. In general, the pods of the later
sorts remain crisp and tender a much longer period than those of the
earlier descriptions.

EARLY VALENTINE.

Valentine.

Plant about sixteen inches high, with small, yellowish-green leaves and
white flowers; the pods are comparatively short, usually four and a half
or five inches long, sickle-shaped, almost cylindrical, green while
young, yellow when ripe, and contain five seeds.

The variety is productive, and quite early, though not one of the
earliest. When sown at the commencement of the season, the plants will
blossom in six weeks, produce pods for use in about seven weeks, and
ripen in thirteen weeks, or ninety days, from the time of planting. If
planted after the beginning of summer weather, pods may be gathered for
the table in fifty days, and the beans wi