Finger and Toe in the Turnip Crop 



circumstances calculated to yield the 

 best form of root and quality of flesh ; or 

 rather, which compels it to assume these un- 

 toward conditions. There is a tendency in 

 the root itself to keep to its own natural 

 form, and even to return to it, when, by some 

 means or other, it has been forced to lose it 

 for a time; the result of which tendency, 

 or, as we should rather say, of which 

 character or habit of growth, is, that if 

 grown in soil of that even and uniform 

 condition which will permit the root to 

 grow with equal ease in all directions, 

 then we may safely predicate that it will 

 assume its natural characteristic of form, 

 whether that be globular like the turnip, or 

 long and tai)ering likg the carrot. Just as we 

 lind that a potato plant or a pea, for 

 example, will shoot uj) a straight branch to 

 reach the light and air ; but which, if that 

 light and air is at a distance from it, will be 

 long and tortuous. The power of plants to 

 seek after, if the expression may be allowed, 

 the best conditions under which to thrive, 

 has been much overlooked, and gives rise to 

 some curious facts really worthy of examina- 

 tion. Thus, to continue our remarks upon 

 abnonnal development of turnip roots, we 

 can easily understand how a root, endeavour- 

 ing to avoid or get past an obstacle in the 

 soil, whether that obstacle be a hard unyield 

 ing clod of the soil itself, or mass of stone in 

 it, or a neighbouring root, or neighbouring 

 roots which have been carelessly left to grow 

 in juxtaposition with it, may throw out root 

 developments of a more or less numerous and 

 complicated character. From all this will be 

 seen the importance of so preparing the soil 

 that the root will be at liberty to grow as it 

 likes, and to leave it unencumbered with 

 neighbouring plants to act as competitors with 

 it, so to say, for the riches which that sol/ 

 possesses. The more carefully the soil, then, is 

 prepared, so that a thorough uniformity of 

 condition be secured, the fewer will be the 

 chances that the roots growing in it will be 

 deformed. As in sanitary science we find — 

 if we look for them- — abundance of facts to 

 prove that a certain condition of circum- 

 stances in which we cause human beings to 



live induces abnormal developments and dis- 

 eases, so will we find in the science which 

 concerns our readers more closely, that we 

 may induce disease or abnormal growth by 

 the way in which we place the plants we grow 

 or attempt to grow in them. And if we do 

 by some means or other grow plants in such 

 a way that they are abnormally developed 

 we shall find, as a likely concomitant, that 

 development does not always rest at the 

 point of what we may call their physical or 

 external form, but frequently so weakens the 

 healthy powers of the roots that we impart to 

 them a strong tendency to become diseased, if 

 not indeed bring actually about a state of dis- 

 ease — that disease assuming the form and being 

 known by the name of "anbury." This 

 disease consists in the presence of a number 

 of warty excrescences, which, if opened, are 

 found to contain a soft juicy and sometimes 

 foetid matter, and not seldom also grubs. 

 The opinion is generally held that this 

 disease is caused by the presence of some 

 chemical condition of the soil v/hich acts 

 deleteriously upon the plant, and for which 

 the specific is lime. It is yet to be decided, 

 if indeed science will ever be able to decide, 

 what is the cause of this disease. Much 

 conjecture has been thrown out concerning 

 it, but the weight of evidence goes to prove 

 that it is a chemical cause, which is to 

 be met by the application of some 

 substances to the soil — that substance, as 

 above said, being generally lime. 



As we have shewn above, there is a great 

 likelihood that the abnormal development of 

 the roots bring about this disease of 

 anbury ; but we are by no meins sure 

 of this, for a turnip may have " finger-and- 

 toe" and yet not have " anbury," while it may 

 have " anbury" and yet not " finger-and-toe ;" 

 but — and to this we specially draw the notice 

 of the reader who takes the popular view that 

 the terms are synonymous — the turnip may 

 have both diseases at the same time. In 

 view of the losses sustained by anbury, many 

 remedies have been proposed, some of these 

 may be named here. First, on the supposi- 

 tion that frequent repetition of the root in 

 the same soil is bad. making it, to coin a 



