CARDOON

a thistle-like plant closely allied to the artichoke and perhaps of the same species, its differences being attributed to continued selection and long cultivation. The plant is generally more prickly and taller than the artichoke, some varieties attaining a height of eight to ten feet, with leaves often three.feet or more in length, greyish-green above and nearly white underneath. It is grown chiefly for the leaf midribs of the young plant, which are thick, fleshy, tender, and crisp if properly cultivated and blanched. Cardoon is used in salads, stews, and soups, and as a separate vegetable. Considerable quantities are imported from France to supplement the domestic product. In cooking as a separate vegetable in its simplest form, the stalk is cut into sections. or thin strips, five to six inches long, thoroughly cleaned and seraped, boiled in slightly salted water until tender, then drained, freed from strings if any remain, and served with a white or butter sauce. It should be stirred occasionally while cooking and should be kept covered with water in order to avoid a tendency to blacken. It should not be over-hoiled. Cooking in ca erole, or otherwise, with herbs, vegetables, fine-cut ham, etc., according to taste, makes an entrée that is both pleasing and novel to the American palate. The plant requires rich soil and abundant moisture to insure the desired quick, steady growth of thick, full ribs. Equally important is thorough blanching, other- ‘wise the stalks will be tough and rank. In American practice, blanching is generally performed in the field where the plants are grown. When the leaves are nearly full grown, they are tied together and banked up, first with straw and then with soil, and thus left for three or four weeks. If there is danger of freezing weather, the blanching may be done in a storage-pit, as generally by Paris i an market-gardeners. The test of the value of any variety of cardoon is fullne of rib. Size and lack of spines are characteristics of secondary importance. The variety most highly prized by Paris i an gardeners is the Prickly Tours Cardoon. This is one of the smallest, and the most spiny of all, but its ribs are thick, full, and tender.