Corn Salad

Fetticus. Lamb's Lettuce. Mâche, of the French. Valeriana locusta.

This is a small, hardy, annual plant, said to derive its name from its spontaneous growth, in fields of wheat, in England. It is also indigenous to France and the south of Europe.

When in flower, or fully grown, it is from twelve to fifteen inches in height. The flowers are small, pale-blue; the seeds are rather small, of a yellowish-brown color, unequally divided by two shallow, lengthwise grooves, and will keep six or eight years.

Soil and Culture.—It is always grown from seed, and flourishes best in good vegetable loam, but will grow in any tolerably enriched garden soil. Early in April, prepare a bed four feet wide, and of a length according to the quantity of salad required; having regard to the fact, that it is better to sow only a small quantity at a time. Rake the surface of the bed even, make the rows across the bed about eight inches apart, sow the seed rather thinly, and cover about one-fourth of an inch deep with fine, moist soil. If dry weather occurs after sowing, give the bed a good supply of water. When the young plants are two inches high, thin them to four inches apart, and cut or draw for use as soon as the leaves have attained a suitable size.

As the peculiar value of Corn Salad lies in its remarkable hardiness, a sowing should be made the last of August or beginning of September, for use during the winter or early in spring; but, if the weather is severe, the plants must be protected by straw or some other convenient material. Early in March, or as soon as the weather becomes a little mild, remove the covering, and the plants will keep the table supplied until the leaves from fresh sowings shall be grown sufficiently for cutting.

Seed.—To raise seed, allow a few plants from the spring sowing to remain without cutting. They will grow up to the height and in the manner before described, and blossom, and ripen their seed during the summer. An ounce of seed will sow a row two hundred feet in length, and about five pounds will be required for an acre.

Use.—The leaves, while young, are used as a salad; and in winter, or early in spring, are considered excellent. They are also sometimes boiled and served as Spinach.

Varieties.—

Common Corn Salad.

Root-leaves rounded at the ends, smooth, three or four inches long by about an inch in width. The younger the plants are when used, the more agreeable will be their flavor.

Large Round-Leaved.

Leaves larger, of a deeper green, thicker, and more succulent, than those of the foregoing variety. It is the best sort for cultivation. The leaves are most tender, and should be cut for use while young and small.

Large-Seeded Round. Vil.

This is a sub-variety of the Large Round, and is much cultivated in Germany and Holland. The leaves are longer, narrower, and thinner, and more tender when eaten; but the Large Round is preferred by gardeners for marketing, as it bears transportation better. The seeds are about twice as large.

Italian Corn Salad. Vil.

Valerianella eriocarpa.

The Italian Corn Salad is a distinct species, and differs from the Common Corn Salad in its foliage, and, to some extent, in its general habit. It is a hardy annual, about eighteen inches high. The radical leaves are pale-green, large, thick, and fleshy,—those of the stalk long, narrow, and pointed; the flowers are small, pale-blue, washed or stained with red; the seeds are of a light-brown color, somewhat compressed, convex on one side, hollowed on the opposite, and retain their vitality five years,—nearly twenty-two thousand are contained in an ounce.

It is cultivated and used in the same manner as the species before described. It is, however, earlier, milder in flavor, and slower in running to seed. The leaves are sometimes employed early in spring as a substitute for Spinach; but their downy or hairy character renders them less valuable for salad purposes than those of some of the varieties of the Common Corn Salad.