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The Countrv Gailhinan's Magazine 



made clear throughout its depth, so that the 

 plant can be put into it in as natural a posi- 

 tion as jiossible— that is, with its root in the 

 same condition as when it grew in the seed- 

 bed. And this we conceive to be a point of 

 great importance. The root is an important 

 part of the plant, otherwise it would not be 

 there, and we do not, therefore, believe in the 

 efficacy of nipping off the tap root. True, if 

 the dibble hole is so badly made as to double 

 up and contract the root, then, as this will 

 bring about abnormal development and a 

 weakly plant as a consequence, it would be 

 better to nip oft" the root ; but if the trans- 

 planting is properly done the dibble hole will 

 be deep enough to take in the plant as it 

 ought to be taken in. Hence it is that, if for 

 no other reason, we advocate the dibbling in 

 moist soil, because the operation can best be 



mechanically done. In finishing our opera- 

 tion — which is one more quickly done than 

 described — let the earth be brought to bear 

 firmly up against the plant ; more plants die 

 from being left loose in the soil than from 

 any other cause. If a plant cannot bear a 

 good pull without giving way or coming up, 

 the transplanting has not been properly done. 

 After all that has been said, we fear that 

 in the minds of some reader the quotation 

 already given, of "' much ado about no- 

 thing," may come up ; nevertheless, we be- 

 lieve that the subject of these remarks is 

 worthy of consideration, and those who have 

 followed it out in practice, and seen its bene- 

 fits, may say in the words of the classic poet, 

 in answer to those who object — " How small 

 to others; yet, oh ! how great to me !" 



FINGER AND TOE TV THE TURNIP CROP 



" T7I^'GER-AND-T0E," as distinguished 

 X from " anbury," is a disease which 

 arises from a malformation of the root, 

 or rather we should say more correctly, 

 it is malformation of the root which is 

 the disease — this malformation taking the 

 form of a series of offshoots of more or less con 

 voluted, twisted, and stunted projections, which 

 bear somewhat the same position and shape as 

 the fingers or the toes bear to the hand or the 

 foot, hence the name " finger-and-toe." AVe 

 believe that this malformation arises mainly — 

 it is not possible to say in the present condi- 

 tion of agricultural science, altogether — from 

 the mechanical condition of the soil, although 

 it is possible that its chemical condition has 

 also an influence in creating it. The mere 

 malformation of the root, shewn in its curious 

 offshoots, is, however, not the evil ; for this 

 malformation induces a marked change in the 

 character of the flesh of the root, chang- 

 ing this from its healthy condition of 

 a more or less dense vegetable sub- 

 stance, of a fairly homogeneous aud 

 nutritious nature, to one of a hard woody 



and innutritions one. We say we believe 

 that this abnormal form of the root, and its 

 almost always accompanying deterioration 

 in quality, is brought about mainly by the 

 mechanical condition of the soil ; but we have 

 further to say, that an exciting cause is to be 

 traced in cases where two or more plants are 

 allov/ed to continue to grow together, thus 

 either twisting and twining round one another 

 in a most curiously contorted manner, often 

 enough met with in badly thinned or singled 

 turnips ; or one, which while taking and keeping 

 the lead, although growing larger than theother, 

 grows in a form more or less abnormal, and 

 always of less size and more woody character 

 in its flesh than it otherwise would have been. 

 It will be easy at this point in our argument — 

 if the name of argument can be given to state- 

 ments founded much upon conj ecture, although 

 we may claim for that conjecture a fairly sound 

 basis of facts and of reasoning from analogy 

 — to see that the same, or much of the same 

 result, will be the case where the soil is in 

 that unkindly and unyielding condition which 

 does not admit of the root growing in the 



