ROOT CROPS. 241 



PLYMOUTH. 



Statement of Seth Sprague. 

 Onions. — The quarter of an acre of land on which were 

 grown the onions entered by me for premium, was cropped with 

 onions the last year. I spread thereon five and a half tons of 

 kelp or sea-weed, which was ploughed under eight inches deep. 

 The last week in April, spread six cart-loads of good, fine com- 

 post manure. The lot was then harrowed several times, and 

 hand-raked ; and the first week in May, planted with the im- 

 proved Danvers Silverskin, with a seed-sower, in rows, fourteen 

 inches apart. The land is a moist, not wet, black loam. The 

 ground proved weedy, which gave us much trouble j the rows 

 being close together, increased the labor of cultivation. The 

 crop was harvested between the 10th and 20th instant, and 

 measured one hundred and ninety-two bushels. Expense of 

 cultivation, exclusive of manure, $22.50. 



DtTXBURY, September, 1853. 



Statement of George Drew. 



Ruta-Bagas. — The land on which I planted one-quarter of 

 an acre of French turnips, the present season, was planted to 

 corn in 1852. In April, 1853, 1 ploughed and harrowed it; the 

 second week in June, I carted on two cords of barn manure, 

 ploughed it in, and harrowed it. In about a week after, I 

 ploughed it again, lightly spread on thirty-eight bushels of 

 ashes, and harrowed it. On the 24th and 25th of the same 

 month, I planted it. I dug holes for the hills, with a hoe, two 

 feet one way, and twenty inches the other; put in a small 

 spoonful of plaster, dropped the seed by hand, and covered 

 it with a hoe. 



Expenses : — 



Ploughing three times, and harrowing, carting on manure 



and ashes, $4 00 



Planting, 2 50 



Forty-eight bushels of ashes, at 12 cents, . . . 5 76 



One hundred pounds of plaster, 50 



31* 



