358 THE AMERICAN FARMER. 



well pulverized and plowed very deep, as the roots have a tendency to penetrate perpendicu 

 larly into the ground, growing from two to three feet or more in length, the larger end always 

 being deepest in the soil. This is the great objection to its culture, as considerable digging is 

 required to obtain them. 



The vines may either be made to climb poles like some kinds of beans, or may creep on 

 the ground. They may be planted in the spring as soon as the season is sufficiently advanced 

 to preclude the danger of frost, placing them from eight to twelve inches apart, and may be 

 cultivated in a manner similar to that of the sweet potato or yam of the Southern States, 

 except it should be left undisturbed in the ground from one year to another until f desired for 

 use. The principal growth of the roots takes place in the autumn; therefore, when used the 

 first season, they should not be dug until November. They will not be injured by frosts, even 

 in New England, but will live through the winter, and when once started, will continue to 

 grow and spread with as much rapidity as artichokes, requiring very little care. They will 

 not, however, be injured in quality and become strong and woody like the roots of the pars 

 nip, and some other plants, after the first year s growth. It is well to give them a covering 

 of straw, leaves, or spruce boughs for the winter, in those sections where the climate is very 

 severe, which covering should be removed early in the spring. It is a very nutritious and 

 healthful article of food, but will never be valued as highly in this country as the sweet or 

 common potato, although it might prove quite a good substitute for either, in case there 

 were a necessity for a substitute, by a failure of the former crops. They may be roasted or 

 boiled, possessing something of the rice flavor as well as that of the Irish potato. The vines 

 of the Chinese yam make a very pretty climbing plant, and suitable for screens, arbors, or 

 coverings for unsightly places. They will not blossom until the roots are two years old, after 

 that the flowering is very abundant, the blossoms having a fragrance similar to that of cinna 

 mon. A few tubers planted near a door or window, with the vines trained over or about it, 

 make a very desirable ornament. 



TURNIPS. 



THE value of the turnip product of this country is not to be compared with that of Eng 

 land, where it forms one of the most important of field crops, as food for stock, and 

 where they are also commonly fed to sheep from the fields, which are enclosed with Imr- 

 dles or movable fences. There is, however, scarcely a farmer in this country but that has his 

 turnip-field, although usually limited when compared with the extent of land appropriated to 

 many other crops. The nutritive properties of the turnip, when compared with some other 

 root crops, are not great, on account of the large proportion of water in their composition, 

 which is about ninety per cent. ; but they are valuable when fed with other substances. The 

 turnip is found growing wild in Europe and Northern Asia, but cultivation has improved 

 it almost beyond recognition as the same species of plant. 



The common flat turnip was introduced into the United States by our English ancestors, 

 and has ever since that time been regarded as a palatable vegetable for the table. In this 

 country, turnips are used for feeding sheep, more than other stock, carrots and mangel-wurtzels 

 being generally considered more valuable food for cows and horses. Turnips are a crop that 

 can be raised with comparatively little labor and in large bulk, the average yield of many sec 

 tions being from 800 to 1,000 bushels per acre, and hence in this respect are an economical 

 crop for those farmers having lands and stock suited to their cultivation and use. 

 They are, however, considered rather cold food for severe winter weather, and when given to 

 pregnant ewes in this season, should be mixed or fed in connection with something having a 

 tendency to produce warmth, such as corn or meal. 



