heavily manured for the previous
Work soil down between
Chicory
Chicory, a less cornrnon salad vege-
table.
Chicory (Chicorunz entybus) is
closely related to lettuce and
endive. The variety used for forc-
ing is Whitloof de Belgique. It is
grown in much the same way as
a carrot and when the root is well
developed it is lifted and the top
cut back and the root covered to
form a small " chicon " which is
a small, solid white blanched head
like the heart of a small cos lettuce.
It is much sought after in Europe
as a salad vegetable. Whitloof can
also be grown without forcing by
blanching the heads in the row.
Soil requirements and fertiliser
Chicory differs in soil requirements
to lettuce and chicory as the prime
objective is to produce a sturdy
root for forcing. The soil in the
bed should be at least 200 mm
deep and not be too heavy. A
deep loam is prcferab!e. The
lighter the soil the better the shape
and the texture of the root. As
fresh animal manure can cause
forking and other malformations
of the root, a bed which was
roots.
crop should be chosen. The rate
of fertiliser applied will depend on
previous treatment.
Where the bed has received
animal manure or compost for the
previous crop, 75 g of complete
fcrtiliser NPK 3 : 6 : 7 or from
125 to 150 g where no animal
fertiliser has been used. Excess
nitrogen fertiliser produces soft
roots, which are prone to rot when
being forced to produce chicons.
Sowing and thinning
Chicory is best sown direct in mid-
spring and thinned to required
spacings. Transplanted root crops
are often a failure. The sowing
operation is identical to that of
lettuce and endive. However
spacing in the row is closer than
for letture or endive. When the
plants are 50 mm tall, thin to
100 to 150 mm between plants.
Growing the crop
The chicory is allowed to grow on
steadily until autumn when a
sturdy root about 200 mm long
has been produced. The root is
then carefully removed from the
soil with a fork to avoid mechan-
ical damage and breakdown of the
root at the final stage of chicon
production.
Forcing
In order to produce the chicons
the roots are placed in soil or sand
that is free of compost or manure.
The roots are prepared by cut-
ting 05 the tap root at the base of
the enlarged root and removing
all but 50 mm of the foliage above
the crown.
The next requirement is a site
for forcing. Low spots or areas
where drainage water runs through
are unsuitable. The trench about
150 mm deep is dug. Loosen the
soil for a further 75 mm deep.
The size of the pit will depend on
the number of roots to be forced.
However large or small, the prin-
cipal rcmains the same. Roots are
placed in the trench in rows about
25 mm apart with 15 mm between
the roots and water, taking care
not to saturate the area. Now
cover the roots with a 250 mm
deep layer of fine dry soil (sandy
for preference). Cover the pit to
keep out overhead water but leave
the sides open.
Harvesting
The chicons will develop and be
ready to harvest in two to three
months when they have nearly
reached the top of the casing soil.
Carefully remove the soil from
around the chicon and root and
remove it from the pit. Screw
the head off the root and remove
dirty and discolored leaves. The
chicon is now ready to be pre-
pared for the salad bowl. The
root is now spent and is discarded,
Whitloof may also be grown as
a salad vegetable without produc-
ing chicons. It is grown in the
nanner already described and is
thinned to about 200 mm in the
row and is allowed to develop to
a head which is loose and spread-
ing. At this stage its texture is
coarse and it is bitter to the taste
unless it is blanched. Blanching
is achieved by covering plants with
a suitably sized earthen flower pot
for two to four weeks or plants
may be covered with a thick layer
of straw to exclude light. Plants
are covered progressively accord-
ing to the number required over a
period of time.

Cucumbers and
gherkins
Cucumbers (Cucumis sativus)
are useful for summer salads and
are easy to grow in the home
garden, although like other cucur-
bits they require a relatively
large amount of room. Plants
can be spaced a metre apart.
Gherkins are immature cucum-
bers which are usually pickled.
Cucumbers and gherkins have
the same cultural requirements as
pumpkins, see page 104. Popular
cucumber varieties include Ash-
ley, Palmetto, Marketer, Palo-
mer, Polaris, Long Green, Early
Cucumbers are easy to grow in the home garden.
86
Fortune and Marketmore. They
are all dark green and range
from 150 to 250 mm in length.
Crystal Apple is an apple shaped
variety which is a heavy yielder.
Gherkins which are grown for
pickling include Heinz Pickling,
Ohio 17, Super Pickle and Early
Fortune.
Cucumbers and gherkins should
be harvested well before full
maturity. To keep them produc-
ing and to maintain a dark green
color, they must be picked fre-
quently. Leave the stem attached
to the fruit and be sure that any
over-mature or yellow fruits are
removed from the plant.
Egg plant
The egg plant (Solanum melon-
gena) or aubergine thrives under
very warm conditions and most
commercial crops in Victoria are
grown in the north of the state.
It is extremely sensitive to frost.
Long periods of cold weather
cause big reductions in yield.
In general, culture is similar
to tomatoes. Plants can be raised
in sheltered seed beds for early
transplanting in October. The egg
plant can also be seeded directly
in the garden in the warmer north-
ern districts sowing groups of
three of four seeds at each stake
and later thinning.
Egg
- -plant
. can be served in many
ways. A popular method is to
cut the fruit into thin slices and,
after salting to taste, frying in
batter and serving with bacon.
The flavor is not unlike fried egg,
hence the name.
Egg plant can also be boiled,
roasted or baked in the same way
as pumpkin or squash and served
along with other vegetables. Egg
plant, stuffed with meat and
seasoning is well worth trying.
The egg plant does not trans-
plant easily and should be pricked
out at the two leaf stage into a
soil block or tube. Alternatively,
the seeds can be sown in peat
or paper pots and transplanted
with a minimum disturbance of
the roots.
Seeds should be dusted with
thiram, as seedlings are very sus-
ceptible to damping off. Seedlings
should also be sprayed with zineb
or maneb to control this disease.
Soil requirements and planting
Choose a deep friable loam with
good drainage, and cultivate
deeply before transplanting in
October. Apply a liberal dressing
of animal manure before planting,
along with NPK 3 : 6 : 7 com-
plete fertiliser mixture at the rate
of 100 to 150 g per square metre.
Do not transplant until the
danger of frost has passed. Set
the plants in rows one metre

The egl:plar~rgrcl~vs,cell it2
apart and about 600 mm between
plants.
Avoid over-watering when the
plants are small, and gradually
increase the amount of water ap-
plied as the plants begin to set
fruit. Any check in growth will
greatly reduce yields. Side-dress
the plants with a nitrogen fer-
tiliser and mulch with fowl
manure after the fruit has set.
Pinch out the central growing
point when the seedling is 150
mm high and tie the $ant to a
stake. Plants grow 600 mm to
750 mm hi&. The number of
fruit should be restricted to about
six per plant to maintain fruit
size.
Aphids and caterpillars attack
1va1.112corlditio~is,arld is ertrc~rlz~ly
s e ~ i c i t ~ vto
the plants. Spray every 10 to 14
days with carbaryl or maldison.
Thinning and tying will reduce
soft rots caused by fruit touching
the damp soil. Copper fungicides
applied to the manufacturers
directions, will also keep rots in
check.
Hawesting
Fruits are ready to pick about
90 days after transplanting. They
should be full colored, but not
over- mature. Over mature fruits
have slightly shrivelled skin. The
flesh becomes tough and the seeds
begin to harden. Cut the fruit
from the bush with a sharp knife.
The stems are extremely tough.
Sound fruit will keep in cool
conditions for three or four weeks
after being picked.
Fennel
Florence fennel or finnochio is
a variety of common fennel
(Foenicubrrn vulgare), which is
known as aniseed-a noxious
weed found in many parts of
Victoria.
The Florence or sweet fennel
is typified by the much thickened
crowded bases of the leaf stalks.
The thickened leaves from a
bulb-like mass above ground level
is the edible portion. It is har-
vested from April through
October.
Soil preparation
Loams or sandy loams are well
suited to the production of
Florence fennel. The land should
be worked deeply and to a good
tilth similar to a seedbed for
carrots or parsnips. Drainage
must be good because Florence
fennel is prone to waterlogging.
Fennel grows well under a wide
range of soil reactions and is tol-
erant of strong acid reactions of
pH5 through to those which are
alkaline. Reactions of pH6 to
p H 6 - 5 as for carrots and lettuce
are ideal.
e frost.
Manures and fertilisers
Fennel thrives on applications of
poultry manure and can receive
a dressing of a bag to 20 to
25 square metres of bed. Fowl
,
manure-deep litter-from layer
pens or from intense broiler pro-
duction which is a rich brown ,
throughout is suitable. Half the 1
amount is used if manure is ob-
I
tained from layer cages. Dig in 1
with the base dressing.
A base fertiliser of NPK
5 : 8 : 4 complete fertiliser or its
equivalent in more concentrated
form, at the rate of 100 to 150 g
per square metre is applied a
couple of weeks before sowing or
j
planting and raked into the top
50 mm of the bed prior to sowing
or planting.
Side dressings of nitrogen and
potassium may be necessary e s p e
cially in light soils if heavy rain
leaches the soluble nutrients and
during winter apply 15 t o 30 g
of NPK 20 : 0 : 16 fertiliser to
the metre' of row as required. The
seed is generally sown directly
and left in situ for the life of
the vegetable but it is possible
to transplant them. Direct sow-
i n g ~ are preferred as the plant
then does not suffer a transplant-
ing check. Transplants from the
last few direct drilled crops are
useful for producing the late crop.
Seeding
Seed should be sown at the rate
of one gram to 15 metres of drill
row. Rows should be 300 mm
apart. Thin seedlings to 150 mm
or alternatively transplant seed-
lings at this distance.
Sowings are made from January
onwards. Late January and
February are likely to be the
most successful particularly in
sheltered, sunny, and well drained
areas. Summer sowings mature
in 14 weeks, later crops take up
to 20 weeks. Autumn plantings
should not be made after the end Fetrtzel-the tl~lcXerlrn'hulh-llhe ~ n n s rabovc tlzr grurozci l c r ~ I~S ltile edible portion.
,of March. Late maturing crops
are usually transplanted. must be exercised. as in the case and mixed into salads. It has
of its relative celery, to ensure a sweet and palatable slight ani-
Pests and diseases that the thickened stems do not seed flavour and adds piquancy to
Aphids are the only pest which become over-mature. The edible the salad.
is known to attack fennel. Maldi- portion of both vegetables when
son or dimethoate sprays will con- It may be boiled in salt water
over-mature become stringy and for about 10 minutes o r until
trol this pest, they should not be are unpalatable.
applied within seven days of har- soft but not mushy and served
vesting. There are no diseases either hot or cold with a dash
Common fepnel of oil and vinegar or with salad
which affect this crop in Victoria
and no fungicide spray program The common fennel, a noxious dressing. It may also be fried
is necessary. weed, is used for flavoring and in butter or oil until soft and
culinary purposes by people who used as a hot vegetable. It has
Blanching prefer strong flavors. a pleasant aniseed flavor which
Well grown fennel has a large The main use made of this
is neither strong nor rank. It may
canopy of fern-like leaves which weed is of the seed or more
also be used to flavor soups or
makes it unnecessary to blanch properly the fruit of fennel, which
is usually ground up and used used in stews.
the vegetable. Where the crop The young green portions of
is sparse or the canopy thin, earth as a flavoring lor salami and
may be hilled up around the bulb- other exotic sausages. The seed the leaves may be finely chopped
like growth t o effect blanching of is also used as flavoring for bread, and used sparingly as a garnish.
the outer leaf stalks. pastry, confectionery, liqueurs, It is especially useful in flavoring
and in medicine. soups made with vegetable pro-
Maturity tein, such as pea, lentil or mine-
The vegetable may be eaten at Culinary uses of Florence fennel strone soups. It may be used
any stage of growth when reasoa- The white, bulbous portion is either fresh or dried for this
able size has developed but care chopped into thin small portions purpose.
88