PARSNIP CULTURE 199 



Soil and Culture. The excellence of the parsnip is vested in 

 a well-developed root, and to secure this rich, deep, and permeable 

 soil and adequate moisture are required. Deep cultivation and 

 manuring will secure these qualities even in rather a heavy soil. 

 Parsnip seed is light and should receive a shallow covering but it is 

 necessary that it should be well firmed in moist soil to secure ger- 

 mination. As soon as the plants are two or three inches high the 

 rows should be cleaned of weeds, the plants spaced, and frequent 

 use of the cultivator begun, to continue all summer. The sugges- 

 tions made for the preparation of soil and cultivation of the beet and 

 the carrot have direct application to the growth of the parsnip, and 

 the reader is referred to them. 



In the rainy parts of the state it is customary to sow parsnips 

 as soon as the ground is in good condition in February, as the plant 

 is quite hardy. From this date onward the seed can be successfully 

 sown as long as the soil has moisture enough, and in moist interior 

 lands seed can be sown in July, or even later, and the plants will 

 make a good fall growth and be ready for winter use from the 

 ground, as late sowing in a warm region with moisture assured, 

 carries the plant along without danger of a check and a second 

 growth. 



Varieties. Two varieties of parsnips prevail in this state : 



Hollow Crown or Student: long, large, smooth roots in deep 

 soils; tender, sweet, and fine flavored when well grown. This is 

 the chiefly grown variety. 



Improved Guernsey: half-long, shorter and thicker than the 

 foregoing. 



Devonshire : another short variety popular with market gar- 

 deners in southern California. 



Round or Turnip Rooted : better suited for shallow soils, owing 

 to shape ; develops faster than the long type. 



SALSIFY. 



This delicious root stands subject to the same conditions which 

 have limited the growth of parsnips in this state, but its popularity 

 has increased greatly during the last few years. The requirements 

 of the plant in soil, culture, and season correspond very closely to 

 the parsnip, and it is taken from the ground all through the autumn 



