delicately striped with the same color.

It yields abundantly; and, though the pods are comparatively small, they
are generally preferred to those of the Tall Nasturtium for pickling.

* * * * *

PICRIDIUM.

Garden Picridium. Picridium vulgare.

A hardy, annual plant, from the south of Europe. Stem eighteen inches
high; leaves six to eight inches long, irregular in form, but generally
broad at the ends, and heart-shaped and clasping at the base; flowers
yellow, compound, produced in clusters; the seeds are long, slightly
curved, four-sided, brown or blackish-brown, and retain their vitality
five years.

_Sowing and Cultivation._--The seeds should be sown in April or May, in
drills a foot apart, and half an inch in depth. As the plants, when
allowed to run to seed, produce but little foliage, it is necessary, in
order to secure a continued supply of fresh leaves, to cut or nip off
the flowering-shoot as it makes its appearance. Under proper management,
the leaves grow rapidly, and are produced in great abundance.

_Use._--The leaves have a pleasant, agreeable flavor; and, while young
and tender, are mixed in salads.

* * * * *

PURSLAIN.

Portulaca.

Purslain is a hardy, annual plant. Most of the cultivated kinds are but
improved forms of the Common Purslain (_P. oleracea_), introduced into
this country from Europe, and so troublesome as a weed in most vegetable
gardens.

Stem usually about a foot in length, succulent and tender; leaves
fleshy, broad and round at the ends, and tapering to the stalk; flowers
yellow, resting closely in the axils of the leaves; the seeds are black,
exceedingly small, and retain their germinating powers ten years.

_Soil, Propagation, and Culture._--Purslain thrives well in all
soils,--dry, wet, or intermediate; and is propagated by seeds sown in
shallow drills at any time from April to July.

_Use._--The plants may be cut for use when they have made a growth of
four or five inches. They are mixed in salads, eaten boiled as Spinach,
or pickled.

The species and varieties are as follow:--

COMMON PURSLAIN.

Portulaca oleracea.

Abundant in gardens, cultivated fields, and waste grounds. The Green and
the Golden Purslain are improved sub-varieties. The Common Purslain is
used in all the forms in which the cultivated sorts are used; and,
though some of the latter are considered more succulent, the difference