UMBELLIFERiE. 159 



Carrots detracts from their value as food either for man or beapt. The Carrot requires 

 a liglit soil for its successful cultivation, a somewhat sandy loam or dry peaty land 

 being the best adapted to it. In Arthur Young's time the cultivation of this root 

 was almost entirely confined to the light lands of Norfolk and Suffolk, but it has now 

 extended to many other parts of the kingdom. 



The seed should be sown in ]\Iarch, on earth well prepared and ploughed deeply 

 during the winter. The seed is sown either broadcast or in drills, and the quantity 

 required is about 2 lb. for an acre for drills and 5 or 6 lb. if V)roadcast. During the 

 growth of the crop the gi'eat point appears to be to keep them well weeded, and it is 

 recommended to use the hoe frequently between the rows. Carrots are generally 

 taken up about the last week in October. The operation is performed by three- 

 pronged forks. They are then stored for winter use in a dry place. The ju'oduce of 

 an aci'e of Carrots in Suffolk, according to Arthur Young, is at an average SoO bushels, 

 but it sometimes greatly exceeds this. Horses are remarkably fond of Carrots, and 

 when mixed with oats form very good food for them. With a small quantity of oats 

 or other corn, a horse may be supported on from 20 to 30 lb. of Carrots daily. In the 

 Channel Islands and in Brittany, much larger crops of Carrots and Parsnips are 

 obtained than are yielded in England, the soil being deeply trenched by a spade or 

 plough constructed for the purpose. 



The boiled roots of Carrots are sometimes used as a cataplasm for application to 

 ulcers and cancerous sores. 



In some parts of continental Europe, a spirit is distilled from the roots of the 

 Carrot, the abundance of sugar they contain being easily convertible into alcohol : 

 about 1601b. of the crushed roots are required to yield one gallon of spirit. Sugar 

 has also been obtained from the Carrot; but if.s manufacture is abandoned as unprofitable. 

 In Germany a substitute for coffee has been made of Carrots chopped into small pieces 

 and partially carbonized by roasting. 



The seed of the wild Carrot was at one time esteemed as a valuable remedy for 

 calculous complaints, and a decoction of the whole plant has been administered with the 

 same idea. The foliage of the Carrot is remarkably pretty, not only on account of its 

 feathery appearance, but from the variety of lines which it displays. In the time of 

 James I., ladies wore it in their head-dresses, and at the present time there is no 

 prettier addition to ornamental arrangements of flowers for the table or the drawing- 

 room. In winter I have often seen pretty delicate fern-like decorations produced by 

 cutting off the end of a large carrot and placing it in a saucer of water in a warm 

 place. The elegant tuft of green leaves soon begins to sprout and forms as lovely an 

 object as one obtained at a great price and with much diflSculty. 



Tribe VIII.— CAUCALINE^E. 



Cremocarp ovoid, slightly compressed laterally, often sub- 

 didymous ; columella distinct ; mericarps with 5 primary filiform 

 ridges, clothed with hairs or spines, and 4 secondary ridges, usu- 

 ally more prominent, and bearing stronger prickles. Seed with 

 a longitudinal furrow on the face next the columella. Umbels 

 usually compound. 



