174 CALIFORNIA VEGETABLES 



Harvesting. This is done by pulling, after loosening with the 

 plow. The time, as already stated, is usually during the winter, 

 but feeding often commences in the fall and continues for several 

 months just as with mangels. 



Field Varieties. Several large, yellow and white varieties are 

 used for stock purposes. The richer color and more convenient size 

 of the yellow varieties hold them in favor as a marketable stock 

 carrot, but the large size and greater crop of the White Belgian 

 makes it a favorite where the crop is to be fed at home. This va- 

 riety is grown in all California dairy regions. It sometimes reaches 

 a weight of sixteen pounds or more and a yield of over forty tons 

 to the acre on rich, deep land, though half of these figures would 

 better suit average conditions. The Danvers Half Long, in addi- 

 tion to being a good garden carrot, is largely grown for stock. Long 

 Orange is valuable on light soils where digging is easy. 



Garden Carrots. As already stated garden carrots should be 

 grown quickly with acceptable heat and moisture. Simple forcing 

 conditions, like a bed of five or six inches of good loam over a foot 

 or more of tamped manure and a slight protective covering will 

 give very sweet and tender roots to the short varieties in our cold- 

 est weather. But so much can be done with the ridge system or 

 with raised beds described in a previous chapter and with other 

 simple modifications of open-air conditions that very little forcing 

 is done. 



Country gardeners, as a rule, do not know much about the best 

 table carrots. They supply their tables and their stock too often 

 from the same sowing when much sweeter and tenderer roots should 

 be grown in the garden by small sowings of the improved table 

 varieties. Those which are most grown in California are the fol- 

 lowing : 



Early French forcing carrot: very early, small and fine flavor. 



Ox-heart or Guerande : very short, almost cup-shaped, very rapid grower, 

 early and excellent; does better on heavy soils than the longer rooted kinds. 



Half Long Danvers: a popular market variety, strong grower and suc- 

 ceeding on a wide range of soils ; rich color and good flavor. 



Improved Long Orange : smoother and more uniform than the old sort ; 

 also better flavor and color. 



Chantenay: short and sturdy, bright orange-scarlet, early. 



Improved Short White : best of the whites, short and cylindrical. 



Red St. Valery : one of the best of the medium long varieties. 



Early Scarlet or Short Horn : largely grown and of good quality. 



THE PARSNIP. 



Parsnips are not largely grown in California. Two considera- 

 tions may be involved in an explanation of this fact: one is that 

 our winter supply of fresher vegetables relieves us from dependence 

 upon root-boiling, which is the staple resource of so many dwellers 

 in cold climates ; another is, that the parsnip, if sown early, is not 

 always content to remain dormant and crisp for months as it does 

 beneath the snow. It quickly responds to our winter warmth and 



