204 ^^ Value of Rut a Baga and Tarns conjidered, ]\Iay 



TO THE CONDUCTOR OF THE FARMER's MAGAZINE. 



^hs ^ifjlion confidtTedy luheiher Rut a Baga cr Tafns can be inoft 



profitably culttvated. 

 Sir, 



I HAVE obferved a good deal faid, in your Publication, on the 

 culture of ruta bnga^ as a fucccdftneum for turnip in the fpring ; 

 and have paid condderable attention, not only to the arguments of 

 your corrcfpondents, but alfo to the crops of that root, which have 

 been raifcd for fcveral years pad in this country. With a full im- 

 prelFion of the necelhty of having an article for the fupport of live 

 itock after the turnip feafon, I am inclined to believe that the 

 objeO:, in general cafes, would be more effctlually gained, were 

 ruta baga laid afide, unlefs upon very fine lands, and the variety 

 of potato, commonly called a yam, fubftituted in its place. 



The precarioufnefs of ruta bnga as a crop, has been acknov\'- 

 ledged by almoft every one of your corrcfpondents who has treat- 

 t:d upon the fubjc6l. It requires foil of the befl quality, and a 

 large dofe of rich dung, to infure even a middling crop; there- 

 fore can never be generally nor profitably cultivated by common 

 farmers. I am well aware, that a root of the fame fize is nearly 

 of one third more weight than one of turnips, and that, in point 

 of nourifliment, there is alfo a very confiderable difference. Still, 

 Ti'i'-.tr aii, when we look abroad, and view the fmall crops that are 

 commonly raifed, and take into account the fuperior care bellow- 

 ed upon this root, it mull be acknovi'ledged that neceffity, not 

 profit, is the impelling caufe of its culture. 



On the other hand, yams prefent every advantage which can 

 be got from ruta baga, and are not fo pettifh in their growth. 

 Their culture is a matter of far lefs difficulty, as fuch will grow 

 upon foils where ruta b-^ga would ilarve. They require lefs ma- 

 nure, and may be planted as late in the feafon as the other, thereby 

 enabling the farmer to beftow the like previous preparation upon 

 the ground, the want of which is a general argument againft or- 

 dinary potato hufbandry. By taking them up in October or No- 

 vember, ^hey maybe fiifely houfed, and the ground direclly ridg- 

 ed up arid fown with wheat. No doubt, ruta baga may be remov- 

 ed at the fame period ; but it often happens that the root has not 

 then reached maturity ; its growth being rarely impeded till frofl: 

 fets in. 



I believe that very few crops of ruta baga, exceeding ten tons 

 per Scots acre, have been got in this country, and that many do 

 not exceed one half of that weight •, while, on tiie other hand, I 

 fim prettv certain that fixty bolls of yams, which amount exactly 

 to twtjlve tons, mav be got, were fuch planted upon land fimilar 

 to what is uiually affigncd to ruta baga; and prcfurne, that the 



j'.utvltivc 



