The Field and Garden Vegetables of America Part 104

_Soil, Sowing, and Culture._--"The soils best suited to the growth of the Poppy are such as are of medium texture and in the highest state of fertilization. As the seeds are small, and consequently easily buried, the land should be well pulverized by harrowing and rolling. The seeds are sown in April, in drills about half an inch in depth, and twenty inches or two feet distant from each other. The young plants are afterwards thinned out to from six to ten inches' distance in the rows, and the whole crop kept free from weeds by frequent hoeing.

"The period of reaping is about the month of August, when the earliest and generally the largest capsules begin to open. The plants are then cut or pulled, and tied in small bundles, taking care not to allow the heads to recline until they are carried to the place allotted for the reception of the seed; which is then shaken out, and the sheaves again set upon their ends for the ripening of the remaining capsules.

"In Germany and Flanders, a mode of obtaining the first crop is to spread sheets by the side of the row, into which the seeds are shaken by bending over the tops of the plants: these are then pulled, tied in bundles, and removed; when the sheets are drawn forward to the next row, and so on, until the harvesting is completed."--_Law._

_Use._--Maw-seed is imported to some extent from different parts of Europe, and is princ.i.p.ally used in this country for feeding birds.

OIL-POPPY. _Law._

Gray Poppy. Papaver somniferum olifer.

Stem three feet high, smooth and branching; flowers dull-red, or grayish; capsules very large, oblong; seeds of a brownish color, and produced in great abundance.

It is chiefly cultivated in Italy, the south of France, Germany, and Flanders.

_Use._--"The oil of the seeds of the Poppy is of an agreeable flavor; and, in Europe, is chiefly applied to domestic purposes, for which it is esteemed nearly equal to that of the Olive. Its consumption in this country is comparatively trifling; being princ.i.p.ally used for the finer kinds of oil-painting and by druggists."

OPIUM, OR WHITE POPPY. _Law._

P. somniferum, alb.u.m vel candidum.

Plant strong and vigorous,--the stem, in favorable situations, reaching a height of five or six feet; flowers large, white, and of short duration; seed-pods globular, of large size, often measuring upwards of two inches in diameter; seeds small, white, ripening in August and September.

_Sowing and Cultivation._--"Being an annual plant, the Poppy, when sown in spring, matures its seed the last of summer or early in autumn. It is of easy culture, and can be successfully grown in any section of the Northern or Middle States. It may be sown at any time during the month of April, or the first week in May. The best method of cultivating the plant is in rows two feet and a half apart; and, on the poppies attaining a few inches in height, they are hoed out to a distance from one another of six or eight inches.

"Opium is obtained from the capsules or heads of seed, and is extracted after they are fully formed, but while yet green. The process is simple, and may be taught to children in an hour.

"Two or more vertical incisions are made in the capsule with a sharp knife or other instrument, about an inch in length, and not so deep as to penetrate through the capsule. As soon as the incisions are made, a milky juice will flow out, which, being glutinous, will adhere to the capsule. This may be collected by a small hair-brush such as is used by painters, and squeezed into a small vessel carried by the person who collects the juice. The incisions are repeated at intervals of a few days all round the capsule, and the same process of collecting the exuded juice is also repeated.

"The juice thus collected is Opium. In a day or two, it is of the consistence to be worked up into a ma.s.s. The narcotic matter of the plant may also be collected by boiling; but it is only the exuded juice that forms pure Opium.

"In the opium countries of the East, the incisions are made at sunset by several-pointed knives or lancets. On the following day the juice is collected, sc.r.a.ped off with a small iron scoop, and deposited in earthen pots; when it is worked by the hand until it becomes consistent. It is then formed in globular cakes, and laid in small earthen basins to be further dried. After the opium is extracted from the capsule, the plant is allowed to stand, and ripen its seeds.

"The seeds of the Poppy have nothing of the narcotic principle, and are eaten by the people of the East as a nouris.h.i.+ng and grateful food; and they yield, by expression, an oil which is regarded as inferior only to that of the olive."--_Law._

The expense of labor forms the princ.i.p.al objection to the cultivation of the Poppy in the United States for its opium. As, however, the plants succeed well, and can be easily and extensively grown in any section of the country; and as the process of extraction, though minute, is yet simple,--the employment of females or children might render its production remunerative.

PALMATE-LEAVED RHUBARB. _Law._

Turkey Rhubarb. Rheum palmatum.

This species is readily distinguished by its deeply divided or palmate leaves, and is generally considered as that from which the dried roots chiefly used in medicine are obtained. Like the Pie Rhubarb, it requires a deep, rich soil, which should be thoroughly stirred, and put in as fine a state of cultivation as possible, before setting the plants.

These should be placed about three feet apart in each direction, and kept free from weeds during the summer. They will not be ready for taking up until five or six years old.

The roots are thick and succulent, with a brownish skin and bright-yellow flesh, streaked or variegated with red. After being dug, they are washed clean, cut in rather large pieces, and dried either by the sun, or in kilns formed for the purpose; when they are ready for use.

Rhubarb from Turkey and the neighboring countries is generally preferred; but it is said its superiority, to a great degree, is attributable to the manner in which it is dried and prepared for market.

It is propagated by seed, or by a division of the roots.

RUE.

Ruta graveolens.

Rue is a hardy, shrubby, nearly evergreen plant, and thrives best in poor but dry and warm soil. It is propagated by seeds, or slips, and by dividing the roots. The seeds are sown in April, and the roots may be separated in spring or autumn. The plants should be set about eighteen inches apart in each direction. When extensively cultivated, they are set in rows eighteen inches apart, and a foot asunder in the rows.

_Use._--"Rue has a strong, unpleasant odor, and a bitter, pungent, penetrating taste. The leaves are so acrid as to irritate and inflame the skin, if much handled. Its efficacy as a vermifuge is unquestioned; but it should be used with caution. It was formerly employed in soups; and the leaves, after being boiled, were eaten pickled in vinegar." The plant is rarely used in this country, either as an esculent or for medical purposes.

The kinds cultivated are the following:--

BROAD-LEAVED RUE.

Stem shrubby, four or five feet high; leaves compound, of a grayish-green color and strong odor; flowers yellow, in terminal, spreading cl.u.s.ters; the fruit is a roundish capsule, and contains four rough, black seeds.

At one period, this was the sort princ.i.p.ally cultivated, and is that referred to in most treatises on medicine. More recently, however, it has given place to the Narrow-leaved, which is much hardier, and equally efficacious.

NARROW-LEAVED RUE.

Stem three or four feet high; foliage narrower than that of the preceding, but of the same grayish color, and strong, peculiar odor; the flowers are produced in longer and looser cl.u.s.ters than those of the Broad-leaved, and the seed-vessels are smaller. Now generally cultivated because of its greater hardiness.

SAFFRON. _Law._

Safflower. Carthamus tinctorius.

A hardy, annual plant, with a smooth, woody stem, two and a half or three feet high; leaves ovate, spiny; flowers large, compound, bright-orange, or vermilion; seeds ovate, whitish, or very light-brown, a fifth of an inch long, and a tenth of an inch thick.

_Soil and Cultivation._--It grows best on soils rather light, and not wet; and the seed should be sown the last of April, or early in May, in drills about two feet apart and an inch deep. When the plants are two inches high, they should be thinned to six inches apart in the rows, and afterwards occasionally hoed during the summer, to keep the earth loose, and free the plants of weeds.

_Use._--"It is cultivated exclusively for its flowers, from which the coloring-matter of Saffron, or Safflower, is obtained. These are collected when fully expanded, and dried on a kiln, under pressure, to form them into cakes; in which state they are sold in the market. It is extensively cultivated in the Levant and several countries of Europe, particularly France, Spain, and Germany; in the latter of which, the first gathering of flowers is obtained in the beginning of September; and others, for six or eight weeks following, as the flowers expand. It flowers somewhat earlier in this country, and seems well adapted to our climate.

"Though the color of the petals is of a deep-orange, they are used for dying various shades of red; the yellow matter being easily separated from the other. The flowers of Saffron are employed in Spain and other countries for coloring dishes and confectioneries; and from the seed a fixed oil is obtained, somewhat similar to that of the Sunflower: for which purpose alone, it does not, however, seem deserving of cultivation."

It was formerly much used in medicine in cases of humors and diseased blood.

SOUTHERNWOOD.

Artemesia abrotanum.