CHAP. II.] RUTA BAGA CULTURE. 129 



they began to ferment. This made the most of 

 their leaves turn white. Unwilling, still, to 

 throw them away, I next laid them on the grass 

 in the front of the house, where they got the 

 dews in the night, and they were covered with 

 a mat during the day, except two days, when 

 they were overlooked, or, rather, neglected. 

 The heat was very great, and, at last, supposing 

 these plants dead, 1 did not cover them any 

 more. There they lay abandoned till the 24th 

 of July, on which day 1 began planting Cabbages 

 in my field. I then thought, that I would try 

 the hardiness of a Ruta Baga plant. I took 

 these same abandoned plants, without a morsel 

 of green left about them ; planted them in part 

 of a row of the piece of cabbages ; and they, a 

 hundred and six in number, weighed, when they 

 were taken up, in December, nine hundred and 

 one pounds. One of these turnips weighed twelve 

 pounds and a half. 



76. Bot, it ought to be observed, that this 

 was in ground which had been got up in my 

 best manner ; that it had some of the best of 

 my manure ; and, that uncommon pains were 

 taken by myself in the putting in of the plants. 

 This experiment shows, what a hardy plant this 

 is ; but, I must caution the reader against a 

 belief, that it is either desirable or prudent to 

 put this quality to so severe a test. There is no 

 necessity for it, in general; and, indeed, the 



PART I. K 



