RAPE. 379 



Biennial : root long;, tapering, hard, and Common or 



'Winter Kape. 

 woody, like that of the species before de- Law. 



COLE-SEED. 



scribed. The leaves are smooth, thick, and BEASSICA NAPUS. 

 fleshy, and of much the same form as those of the Annual 

 Rough-leaved Summer Rape ; this species, however, is read- 

 ily distinguished, when young, by its uniformly smooth 

 leaves. The seeds, also, are larger than those of the last- 

 named species ; but this is not to be relied upon as a dis- 

 tinguishing characteristic, as the size of the seeds, in this 

 as in most other plants, is liable to be materially altered 

 by the soil as well as by the previous culture of the seed- 

 stock. 



The seeds are sown in summer, and the crop ripens the 

 following year. It is not adapted to the climate of the 

 Northern States. 



In England, the foregoing species are extensively culti- 

 vated both for forage and for seeds ; the latter are used to a 

 limited extent for feeding birds, but chiefly for the production 

 of rape-seed oil. 



The German Rape somewhat resembles the German 



Rape. Law. 

 Common or Winter. It differs in being: of an- ANNUAL OR EAK- 



LY RAPE. 



nual duration, in its more deeply divided leaves, ^MME'^IUPE? 



BEASSICA PE^- 



more erect pods, and smaller seeds. cox - 



It would unquestionably succeed well in almost any part 

 of the Northern or Middle States, and might prove as re- 

 munerative a crop as corn or wheat. The seeds should be 

 sown in May, and the plants should be treated and the crop 

 harvested, in all respects, as Mustard. It is sometimes sown 

 broadcast, but generally in drills. When sown broadcast, 

 eight or ten pounds of seed will be required for an acre ; if 

 in drills, three or four pounds will be sufficient. The yield 

 varies from twenty to forty bushels per acre. 



