The Duke and the Lady Gardener (The Grantham Girls Book 1) by Alissa Baxter

Author:Alissa Baxter [Baxter, Alissa]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, Romance, Historical
Publisher: Dragonblade Publishing, Inc.
Published: 2023-05-01T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eighteen

Early the following morning, the duke’s coach stopped outside Longmore House to collect Alexandra, and they drove the short distance to Covent Garden. When they entered the busy market, Alexandra gazed around in amazement, breathing in the sweet, heady smells. The quantity of fruit and vegetables on display was astounding. But the market did not only accommodate sellers of garden produce. Haberdashers, cooks, bakers, and butchers also exhibited their goods, while vendors of glass, earthenware, ironmongery, and other merchandise had their products on sale as well.

A hawker came up to Alexandra, offering her a cake, while other informal sellers raised their voices, advertising combs, pocketbooks, and even knives.

They passed a coffee house, and when Sir Charles stopped to buy Letitia a bun, the duke offered Alexandra his arm.

“It is a wholesale market today, Miss Grantham, so the market has been flooded by growers and gardeners.”

Alexandra stopped in front of a stall where a man was selling cauliflowers. She could hear a grower making a delivery at the back of the booth, talking about the potato crop he was expecting later that year. “This sort of potato has been propagated for too long, I fear. It’s lost some of its goodness. It was once a fine variety, but now—” he shook his head.

“Are you fearful it won’t produce at all this year?” the vendor said.

“Aye. The only method of propagating them is by dividing the roots, and the quality’s not the same.”

“I know of an excellent method to propagate early varieties of potatoes,” Alexandra said in a clear voice.

When the vegetable seller and the grower only stared at her, she continued, “If you see that you have a good variety, you should obtain seeds from the potato in its early stages to take advantage of that goodness. Unfortunately, the duration of any variety is limited to only about fourteen years, and by then, it’s too late to obtain good seeds.”

The grower shook his head again. “Begging your pardon, miss, but you’ve been misinformed. Seeds can only be obtained from the late kinds, and they are but rare.”

Alexandra opened her hands wide. “I assure you I am informed by my own research and the potatoes I’ve produced. I promise, if you use the same method, you will be able to obtain seeds from the earliest and best varieties of potatoes.”

The grower folded his arms. “I cannot credit it, miss.”

“Early potatoes fail to produce seeds only due to the early formation of tuberous roots which draw off sap for its support, instead of supporting blossoms and seeds.”

The grower frowned as he glanced at the duke before fixing his gaze on Alexandra once again. “So what do you do, miss? I’ve tried it in the past with naught success.”

“To prevent tuberous roots from forming, one must allow blossoms to grow. First, fix some sturdy stakes in the ground. Then raise the soil in a heap around their bases and plant the potatoes on their south sides. When the sprouts are about four inches

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