THE TURNIP. 



187 



flavor may thus be procured in the months of January and 

 February. The best sort for this late sowing is the Dutch 

 yellow, which (as already hinted) resists the cold and 

 inclement weather better than the white. For this winter 

 crop a liberal application of stimulating manure, such as 

 rape-cake and pigeon dung, was recommended by the late 

 excellent Mr. Stuart of Pinkie garden ; he sowed in drills 

 a foot asunder, and thinned out the plants to six inches 

 apart in the drills : a sheltered border was preferred, but 

 no other artificial protection was given ; and his success 

 was complete. 



The young plants, while in the seed leaf, are often de- 

 stroyed by a small beetle called the turnip-fly {Haltica ne- 

 morum). Many remedies have been proposed : it has been 

 found beneficial to dust the rows with quick-lime ; but per- 

 haps the best precaution is to sow thick, and thus ensure a 

 sufficient supply both for the insect and the crop. The 

 insect soon ceases to feed and disappears. 



In the United States the Turnip, though a highly valu 

 able product of the soil, is by no means so important a crop 

 as it is in England. The varieties which have been found 

 best adapted to the soil and climate of the Middle State* 

 are the Early White Butch or White Strap-leaved, of 

 which there are the round and flat kinds ; the Early Red- 

 top Dutch, or Strap-leared Red-top, resembling the pre- 

 ceding in form, but having the portion of the root which 

 grows above ground of a red or purple color ; the Early 

 Yelloiv Dutch. For spring use, the Swedish Turnip, or 

 Rut a Baga, should be sown from the middle to the end 

 of July. 



It is computed that an ounce of seed will suffice for a 

 bed four feet wide by forty long. For an early crop, sow 

 as soon as the frost is out of the ground, in drills or broad- 



