The Field and Garden Vegetables of America Part 101

TAMARIND SUGAR.

Late Dwarf Sugar. Tamarind Pea.

Plant similar to the Common Dwarf Sugar, but of more luxuriant habit, and with larger foliage; flowers white; pods single or in pairs, six to eight seeded, very long and broad,--often measuring four inches in length and an inch in breadth,--succulent, and generally contorted and irregular in form. A few days later than the Common Dwarf Sugar.

Hardy, prolific, and deserves more general cultivation.

WHITE-PODDED SUGAR. _Vil._

Stem four to five feet high; leaves yellowish-green, and, like those of the Giant Eatable-podded, stained with red at their insertion with the stalk; flowers purple; pods nearly three inches long, five-eighths of an inch wide, sickle-shaped and contorted, of a yellowish-white color, containing five or six peas. The ripe seeds are irregularly flattened and indented, of a greenish-yellow color, marbled or spotted with brown or black.

The variety is quite late. Sown May 1, the pods were not fit for use till July 24.

The pods are crisp and succulent, though inferior in flavor to most of the Eatable-podded varieties.

YELLOW-PODDED SUGAR. _Vil._

Stem three to four feet high; leaves large, yellowish-green; flowers white, tinted with yellow; pods four inches long, tapering slightly at the ends, greenish-yellow, thick and fleshy, containing six or seven peas, widely separated. The ripe seeds are oblong, rather regular in form, and of a creamy-white color.

It is one of the earliest of the Eatable-podded sorts; coming to the table, if planted May 1, about the middle of July. It is of good quality, but not hardy or productive; and seems to have little to recommend it, aside from the singular color of its pods.

PEA-NUT.

Ground Bean. Earth Nut. _Vil._ Pindar Nut. Ground Nut. Arachys hypogea.

A native of Africa, and also of Central and Tropical America. It is an annual plant; and the stem, when full grown, is about fifteen inches in height. The leaves are pinnate, with four leaflets, and a leafy, emarginate appendage at the base of the petioles; the flowers are yellow, and are produced singly, in the axils of the leaves; the fruit, or pod, is of an oblong form, from an inch to an inch and a half in length, rather more than three-eighths of an inch in diameter, often contracted at the middle, but sometimes bottle-formed, reticulated, and of a yellowish color; the kernels, of which the pods contain from one to three, are oblong, quite white, and enclosed in a thin, brown skin, or pellicle.

A remarkable peculiarity of this plant is, that the lower blossoms (which alone produce fruit), after the decay of the petals, insinuate their ovaries into the earth; beneath which, at the depth of several inches, the fruit is afterwards perfected.

The seed, or kernel, retains its germinative property but a single season; and, when designed for planting, should be preserved unbroken in the pod, or sh.e.l.l.

_Soil and Cultivation._--The Pea-nut succeeds best in a warm, light, loamy soil. This should be deeply ploughed and well pulverized, and afterwards laid out in slightly raised ridges two feet apart. As the plants require the whole season for their perfection, the seed should be planted as early in spring as the weather becomes suitable. Drop nine inches apart in the drills, and cover an inch and a half or two inches deep. Weeding must be performed early in the season; as, after the blossoming of the plants, they are greatly injured if disturbed by the hoe, or if weeds are removed about the roots.

It is rather tropical in its character, and cannot be cultivated with success either in the Northern or Middle States.

"The seeds are sometimes dibbled in rows, so as to leave the plants a foot apart each way. As soon as the flowers appear, the vines are earthed up from time to time, so as to keep them chiefly within the ground. When cultivated alone, and there is sufficient moisture, the yield of nuts is from sixty to seventy-five bushels to the acre. If allowed to grow without earthing up, the vines will yield half a ton of hay to the acre. They are killed by the first frost; when the nuts will be mature, and ready for use."

_Varieties._--

AFRICAN PEA-NUT.

A comparatively small, smooth, and regularly formed sort. Sh.e.l.l thin, usually enclosing two kernels.

WILMINGTON PEA-NUT.

Carolina.

Similar to the African. The pods, however, are longer, and the sh.e.l.l is thicker and paler. They rarely contain less than two, and often enclose three, kernels. Extensively cultivated in the Carolinas and Gulf States.

TENNESSEE PEA-NUT.

Pods large, thick, and irregular in form; the reticulations very coa.r.s.e and deep. The pods usually contain two kernels. Less esteemed than either of the preceding varieties.

VETCH, OR TARE.

Vicia sativa.

The Vetch, or Tare, in its properties and habits, somewhat resembles the Common Pea. There are numerous species as well as varieties, and the seeds of all may be used for food; but they are generally too small, or produced too sparingly, to repay the cost of cultivation.

The only variety of much importance to the garden is the following:--

WHITE TARE, OR VETCH. _Law._

Lentil, of Canada. Napoleon Pea.

Annual; stem slender and climbing, about three feet high, the leaves terminating in a branching tendril, or clasper; flowers purplish; pods brown, slender, containing from eight to twelve seeds, or grains, which are globular, sometimes slightly flattened, smooth, and of a yellowish-white color; they retain their germinative quality three years; an ounce contains about six hundred seeds.

In France and Canada, the seeds are used as a subst.i.tute for pease, both green and ripe, in soups and other dishes. They are also ground, and made into bread; but in this case their flour is generally mixed with that of wheat, or other of the edible grains.

The seeds may be sown in drills, in April or May, in the manner of garden-pease, or broadcast with oats for agricultural purposes.

_Varieties._--

SUMMER TARE, OR VETCH.

An agricultural variety, grown at the north of England and in Scotland.

It is sown broadcast, and cultivated as wheat or barley. Both the haum and seed are used.

WINTER TARE, OR VETCH.

Extensively grown in England and Scotland; usually sown in autumn, mixed with rye, for early spring food for stock. The seeds are smaller than those of the summer variety.

Not sufficiently hardy to survive the winters of the Northern States.