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|image_caption=Okra leaves, flower buds and young fruit
|image_caption=Okra leaves, flower buds and young fruit
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Okra, or Gumbo (Hibiscus esculentus) is a half- hardy plant introduced into United States and West Indies from Africa, and cultivated for its fruit pods, which are used in soups, stews, catsups, and the like (Fig. 2569). In soups and catsup, it gives body to the dish; stewed, it is mucilaginous, and while at first not agreeable to many persons, a taste for it is easily acquired. It is also dried and canned for winter use. When ripe, the black or brown white-eyed globular seeds are sometimes roasted and used as a coffee substitute.
Okra should be sown in a dry warm soil, of medium fertility and texture, after danger of frost has passed. It is important to select the correct type of land for growing okra. It should be a well-drained sandy loam, or if clay only is available it should be a loamy clay, and a soil that is not likely to become water-logged during the rainy weather. The soil should be prepared deeply and thoroughly, the deeper the better, if the soil is good. The rows should be made 3 to 5 feet apart, according to variety, and seeds dropped about 2 inches apart in the row; cover 1 or 2 inches deep.
After plants are 6 inches high, thin to 1 foot apart for dwarf varieties and to about 3 feet for the largest varieties. After the plants have been cut out to a proper stand in the row. frequent cultivation should be given. This is best performed with implements that cut rather deeply. The okra plants do not throw out many lateral roots in the early stages of growth if planted on the proper kind of soil. The seedlings transplant with considerable difficulty, so they need to be started in flower-pots if an extra-early crop is desired. The pods must be gathered before the fiber develops in them: the size will vary with the variety, but if it is too "stringy" to cut with a dull case-knife it is too old. Keep all old pods cut off. The dwarf varieties are in greater favor in the South because of their habit of bearing early. A plant, constantly cropped, remains in bearing condition until frost kills it, but allowed to retain pods it suspends growth until the seeds have matured, when a second growth may take place. Okra will grow for years if not killed by frost or other adverse conditions, i. e., it makes an indeterminate growth like cotton, malva, hibiscus, and the like. For shipping, cut the stems (peduncles) an inch or so long so as to prevent wilting in transit. Pack firmly in vegetable crates. The demand for this vegetable is increasing, especially in New York City. Seed is easily grown and saved. The plant is subject to several diseases to such an extent that it is impracticable to raise a crop on certain pieces of land. Rotation is the best remedy.
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'''Okra''', or '''lady's finger''', is a [[flowering plant]] with small green pods in the mallow family [[Malvaceae]], originating somewhere near present-day [[Ethiopia]]. The word okra is of [[West African]] origin and is cognate with "ókùrù" in [[Igbo language|Igbo]].
'''Okra''', or '''lady's finger''', is a [[flowering plant]] with small green pods in the mallow family [[Malvaceae]], originating somewhere near present-day [[Ethiopia]]. The word okra is of [[West African]] origin and is cognate with "ókùrù" in [[Igbo language|Igbo]].
