The Family Kitchen Gardener (1856)/Okra
OKRA, OR OCHRO.
Hibíscus esculéntus.—Gombo, Fr.
This plant has been introduced to our notice and table from the West Indies, where it is cultivated to some extent as a vegetable. The green seed pods are put into soups, or stewed and served up with butter. It is becoming very popular with us, and grown to a great extent by some gardeners for supplying the market.
Culture.—The seeds are sown thinly, on dry, warm soil, in shallow drills two feet apart, about the same time as the Lima Bean. Cover the seeds lightly. Sometimes they come up and are cut off with the frost; if so, plant again. An ounce of seed will supply any family. After the plants are up, thin them out to nine inches apart; hoe freely, and draw a little earth to the stems as they continue to grow. They will reach the height of five feet in good soil. The pods must be gathered when about an inch and a half long and quite green. As soon as they become brown and hard, they are useless for the kitchen.