Brussels sprouts are closer kin to kale than to cabbage, although not exactly like either. All cole crops have similar needs in soil, food and tillage, so what holds for one may be taken as true for all, except that kale and Brussels Sprouts do not exact so much care as the others. In the Northern States, the seeds are generally sown quite late in the season that the crop may not come to perfection too early, as the plants are most prized in late autumn and early winter. A large part of the crop’s growth is made in the cool weather of early fall. If the seed is sown in seed-beds in June, the plants will be ready to set out late in July or early in August. Where the winters are mild the crop is often left in the field until used, but in the North it is usually dug and placed in pits, like leek or celery. The stalk of the Brussels sprouts may be from two to three feet high, although where the season is short, the dwarf or half-dwarf varieties give surer crops. All along this stalk, from the root to the crown of leaves at the top, grow tiny baby cabbages, each of which is called a “sprout,” and averaging from an inch to two inches in diameter. When the sprouts are small and tender they are the most delicately flavored of any of the cabbage family. In many places, however, the demand is very limited. Success in raising a good crop depends chiefly upon careful selection of seed. There is no crop which runs down so quickly, and in which greater care is necessary in choosing only the best for seed. It is subject to the same diseases as other cole crops. CAULIFLOWER. The cauliflower is more particular than cabbage, both as to climate and cultivation. It won’t head up in the heat and must have a cool, moist climate to reach perfection. It also needs a constant water supply and therefore demands the best of tillage. It will grow only from the best of seed, and as it is easily sunburned, it is grown chiefly for early and late crops. For early crops the seeds are sown in hot-beds or forcing houses, and transplanted as soon as the weather is settled, so that the crop is off in late June or early July. The best varieties for this early cropping are the Snowball and Paris, variations of the Early Dwarf Erfurt. The fall crop is started in seed-beds in the summer and transplanted to the garden. For this crop some of the larger and later growing varieties may be planted.