Root-Crops for Stock-Feeding. 



93 



the year before, this put it in good condition. Four hundred pounds of 

 acid phosphate (17 per cent, available) were sown broadcast and har- 

 rowed in. The land was rolled before sowing and the seeds put in with 

 an Iron Age hand planter, the one with two wheels being preferred by all 

 who used it. 



The early sown part was seeded as time permitted between May 6 

 and II, the mangels being sown during the afternoon of the 6th and the 

 morning of the 7th at the rate of about eight pounds of seed per acre. 

 The late-sown part was seeded on June 12. 



The effort was made to sow mangel and parsnip seeds about three- 

 fourths inches deep and all others one-half inch deep. The mangels 

 came up in 12 days, the cabbages, rutabagas, hybrid turnips and common 

 turnips in five to six days. The carrot seed was very slow in starting. 

 It had not been soaked, as is sometimes advised. The parsnips were a 

 failure. The rates of seeding per acre were: rutabagas about four 



pounds, hybrid and common 

 turnips rather less, carrots six 

 to seven pounds. 



The culture was the same 

 for all types. The hand culti- 

 vator was used twice in May, 

 and the one-horse cultivator 

 was used on May 20 and every 

 two weeks during June and 

 July, and in the case of the 

 late sown crops until August 

 or until the plants met in the 

 row. 



The common turnips and 

 hybrid turnips having rough 

 leaves were injured by soft 

 rot, see p. 61. Aphis attacked 

 the rutabagas and Pioneer hy- 

 brid turnips in September and 

 it became necessary to spray 

 the plants with whale-oil soap 

 (one pound to six gallons of 

 water) to check their ravages. 



The common turnips were 

 Fig. 22. — Lane Improved sugar-beet. Upper 1 t 1 o a 11 ii 



row early sown; lower row late sown. A harvested July I». All other 

 good yielder, vigorousW grower,^ relatively roots were harvested October 

 high in dry matter, hut not so easily harvested , ^ 1 01 



as mangels. Squares six inches. ' 22 and October 29. Samples 



