162 AMERICAN HOME GARDEN. 



1. CUP, OR GUERNSEY. 2. LONG WHITE. 3. ROUND. 



BRIEF DIRECTIONS. 



Sow in good deep soil, in drills eighteen inches apart, and 

 about an inch deep. Cover carefully and firmly, and if dry, 

 give water. Thin the plants to six or eight inches, and hoe 

 often and deeply till the tops touch. 



Time : late spring or the beginning of summer at the North. 

 At the close of summer in the South. New York, throughout 

 May or in the beginning of June. 



The cup parsnep, No. 1, so called from the shape of its crown, 

 is on all accounts the best. Its form is good as well as its 

 quality, and its medium length secures as easy harvesting as 

 seems practicable for a deep-root crop. 



The long white, No. 2, is apt to be comparatively thin and 

 stringy, and sometimes runs so deep that it becomes a task to 

 harvest it. The " round" (or rather " short"), No. 3, is a new 

 variety, possessing nothing to induce its preference to No. 1. 

 It is sometimes called early, but earliness in a winter root is 

 not of special importance. 



Parsneps may be sown at any time from April to July at the 

 North, and as late as August or September at the South ; the 

 later the better if they can be driven rapidly in their growth 

 by careful, constant cultivation. See remarks under Beet, p. 

 120. 



If the crop is to be plowed, let the rows be two feet apart, 

 and while the plants are quite small, thin them to six or eight 

 inches in the row, and keep the earth about them clean and 

 loose through the season. 



The roots may be harvested in the fall, and stored in an out- 

 house or cellar, either in a bin or in a pile, which should be 

 slightly covered with sand or common earth ; or they may 'be 

 left in the open ground through the winter, and taken out for 

 use as they are wanted. It should be remembered, however, 

 that after they begin to grow in the spring they are undesira- 

 ble for use, becoming in a measure poisonous. 



The parsnep has some advantages over other root crops ;. it 



