396 FIELD CROPS 



enlargement of the stem, which looks like a rutabaga above 

 ground. Cabbage is commonly grown as a garden vegetable, 

 but is used to some extent for feeding to stock, while kohl-rabi 

 is not extensively grown in America for any purpose. Cab- 

 bage produces a large yield of succulent feed, which is best 

 used by feeding direct from the field in the fall. Kohl-rabi is 

 said to be more drought-resistant and to grow in warmer cli- 

 mates than the rutabaga. These two are about equal in feed- 

 ing value. Kohl-rabi should be sown in the same manner as 

 the rutabaga and the plants thinned to about the same dis- 

 tance apart. Cabbage may be sown in the garden early in 

 the spring and transplanted to the field in June by hand or 

 with a transplanting machine, or the seed may be sown in 

 hills about 24 inches apart, dropping three or four seeds in 

 the hill and later thinning to a single plant. The rows should 

 be about 3 feet apart and the plants about 24 inches apart in 

 the row. Cultivation is the same as for other crops discussed 



in this chapter. 



RAPE AND KALE 



538. Description. Rape, Brassica 7tapus, is a quick- 

 growing, leafy plant with stems from 2 to 4 feet tall. The 

 leaves grow along the stem instead of from the crown as in 

 many of the other plants of this genus. The variety which 

 is commonly grown in this country is the Dwarf Essex, a 

 biennial type which produces seed only where the plants will 

 survive the winter. Where it does produce seed, however, 

 the yield is hea\y, so that the seed is cheap, and as only 3 to 

 5 pounds is required to the acre, the expense of seeding is 

 small. Kale, or headless cabbage, one of the numerous 

 forms of Brassica oleracea, grows in much the same form as 

 rape, but has larger leaves and produces heavier yields of 

 forage. It is grown as a forage crop only in the mild climate 

 of western Oregon and western Washington. 



539. Culture. Rape grows best on rich, moist loam soils. 

 Its growth is rapid, hence it is often sown broadcast, as it is 



