gether with a few particulars as to the
esculent properties of the tubers, may be worth recording, as I believe
several gardeners, among them being the Messrs. Sutton, have obtained
tubers of the Ullucus from Kew with a view to giving it a trial. The two
Caracas tubers mentioned above were as large as hens' eggs, rather
longer, and somewhat flattened; the skin was red, as in some potatoes.
These, when placed in heat, rapidly developed shoots, which were removed
as soon as they were strong enough to form cuttings; in this way about a
hundred sturdy young plants were obtained and made ready for planting out
of doors in June. They were planted in a light, sandy, well manured soil
in a position exposed to full sunshine. Here they grew quickly, forming
by the middle of August tufts of shoots and leaves one foot across. They
were earthed up as for potatoes, and the strongest shoots were pegged
down and partly covered with soil, though the latter proved unnecessary.
At this time there were no tubers nor any signs of them. On again
examining the plants in September (about the middle), we were surprised
to find no tubers had yet been formed. The plants were now very strong,
and it was therefore concluded that instead of forming tubers the
strength of the plants had "run to leaves." We gave them up, no further
notice being taken of them till the frost came, when on perceiving that a
frost of four or five degrees did not injure the foliage, we again
examined the plants, and found an abundant crop of tubers just below the
surface of the soil, and varying in size from that of peas to pigeons'
eggs. The plants were left till the haulms had been destroyed by cold,
after which the tubers were gathered. On cooking some of the larger ones
by boiling for half an hour, we found them still rather hard, and with a
flavor of potatoes, almost concealed under a strong earthy taste, quite
disagreeable and soap-like. Considering how short a time these tubers had
had to grow in it is not improbable that their hardness and disagreeable
taste were owing to their being unripe; no doubt young, green potatoes
(these Ullucus tubers were partly green) would be quite as nauseous as
these were.

[Illustration: MELLOCO TUBERS.]

We are told that the Ullucus is extensively cultivated in Peru and
Bolivia, in the elevated regions where the common potato also thrives,
and with which the Ullucus is equally popular as a tuber-yielding plant.
In the _Gardeners' C