Abstract
THE Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries is replacing Bulletin No. 53, “Cabbages and Related Green Crops”, by two publications, which deal with the subject in greater detail. Bulletin No. v 132, “Cabbages, Brussels Sprouts and Miscellaneous Green Crops” (Pp. 30 + 15 plates. H. M. Stationery Office. Is. Od. net) has now appeared. It has been produced by a committee headed by Mr. F. A. Secrett and is a really sound practical handbook. Such modern developments as irrigation and transplanting by machine are discussed ; it seems important that irrigated soil should be worked soon after the water has been given, and mechanical planters should be used on soil which has been rolled. Firm planting is a necessity. In wet districts a 'rucker' or mechanical device for making small mounds of soil is drawn down the drills before planting. This drains away excess water from the young plants, for too much water is as bad as too little. One useful paragraph outlines routine measures of pest control in the seed bed, with applications of naphthalene, calomel and nicotine or pyrethrum. A casual statement that liming provides a permanent cure for club-root disease will strike a north of England grower as too facile a dismissal of the problem ; it does not seem to work there or in Scotland. The rest of the advice about pests and diseases is sound, however, and the grower will find very useful information about cultivation, manuring, varieties and marketing. A calendar for the production of cabbage and savoy throughout the year in the south of England is given, and local practices in the main production centres are described. “Miscellaneous Green Crops” mentioned in the title include sprouting broccoli and kale.
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Green Crops for the Market. Nature 157, 259 (1946). https://doi.org/10.1038/157259b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/157259b0