Further Experiiments on the Economic Value of Root Crops 565 



The large, long varieties may be grown for stock feeding, but there is 

 no reason why half -long, or even stump-rooted, kinds may not yield 

 fully as large crops if given the right culture. The difficulty of harvesting 

 long carrots is an objection to their cultivation. 



Care of the crop. — The labor of weeding and thinning carrots is more 

 arduous than that needed for mangels. Little or none of it can be done 

 with a hand hoe and yet leave the plants near enough together in the row. 

 The labor of harvesting is proportionately greater for carrots, as not all 

 the roots can be pulled without the aid of a fork or of the plow. The 

 tops should be wrung off and the roots stored the same as mangels. In 

 the field, baskets or crates can be used to advantage to handle the roots. 



RUTABAGAS, OR SWEDES 



These roots are more uncertain than mangels to grow, but they should 

 not cost so much for previous preparation and for seed. The previous 

 preparation of the soil 

 need be no better than 

 for corn unless an early 

 crop of roots is desired. 

 If rutabagas are sown as 

 early as mangels are 

 sown, or about May i, 

 the crop will be ready for 

 harvest in September. 



To grow a crop of 

 swedes for winter feeding, 

 sow the seeds from June 

 10 to 20, on land that 

 has been plowed early 

 and kept in good con- 



91 



dition bv occasional ^'"f: ' 59--Bloomsdale rutabaoas; a desirable type Vari- 



eties having less oj the jijroiis roots are seldom jound 

 harrowing to kill weeds 



and to save moisture. If the rows are 30 inches wide, 2 pounds of good 

 seed will be ample for an acre. Varieties that produce good-sized, smooth 

 roots should be preferred to those with many fibrous roots. The seeds 

 should be covered one fourth to one half inch deep. The siirface con- 

 ditions of the field will need to be as good as when mangels are sown. 

 Practically the same operations are required to hoe, thin, cultivate, 

 and harvest swedes as are needed for mangels. ' 



COMMON TURNIPS 



Whitc-fleshed turnips, when grown for stock feeding, arc hardly worth 

 the trouble to sow in rows and cultivate. If there is moisture enough 



