Cabbage \Cab"bage\ (k[a^]b"b[asl]j), n. [OE. cabage, fr. F.
cabus headed (of cabbages), chou cabus headed cabbage,
cabbage head; cf. It. capuccio a little head, cappuccio cowl,
hood, cabbage, fr. capo head, L. caput, or fr. It. cappa
1. An esculent vegetable of many varieties, derived from the
wild Brassica oleracea of Europe. The common cabbage has
a compact head of leaves. The cauliflower, Brussels
sprouts, etc., are sometimes classed as cabbages.
2. The terminal bud of certain palm trees, used, like,
cabbage, for food. See Cabbage tree, below.
3. The cabbage palmetto. See below.
Cabbage aphis (Zo["o]l.), a green plant-louse (Aphis
brassic[ae]) which lives upon the leaves of the cabbage.
Cabbage beetle (Zo["o]l.), a small, striped flea-beetle
(Phyllotreta vittata) which lives, in the larval state,
on the roots, and when adult, on the leaves, of cabbage
and other cruciferous plants.
Cabbage butterfly (Zo["o]l.), a white butterfly (Pieris
rap[ae] of both Europe and America, and the allied P.
oleracea, a native American species) which, in the larval
state, devours the leaves of the cabbage and the turnip.
See Cabbage worm, below.
Cabbage fly (Zo["o]l.), a small two-winged fly (Anthomyia
brassic[ae]), which feeds, in the larval or maggot state,
on the roots of the cabbage, often doing much damage to
the crop.
Cabbage head, the compact head formed by the leaves of a
cabbage; -- contemptuously or humorously, and
colloquially, a very stupid and silly person; a numskull.
Cabbage palmetto, a species of palm tree (Sabal Palmetto)
found along the coast from North Carolina to Florida.
Cabbage rose (Bot.), a species of rose (Rosa centifolia)
having large and heavy blossoms.
Cabbage tree, Cabbage palm, a name given to palms having
a terminal bud called a cabbage, as the Sabal Palmetto
of the United States, and the Euterpe oleracea and
Oreodoxa oleracea of the West Indies.
Cabbage worm (Zo["o]l.), the larva of several species of
moths and butterflies, which attacks cabbages. The most
common is usually the larva of a white butterfly. See
Cabbage butterfly, above. The cabbage cutworms, which
eat off the stalks of young plants during the night, are
the larv[ae] of several species of moths, of the genus
Agrotis. See Cutworm.
Sea cabbage.(Bot.)
(a) Sea kale
(b) . The original Plant (Brassica oleracea), from which
the cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, etc., have been
derived by cultivation.
Thousand-headed cabbage. See Brussels sprouts.
Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
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