PARSNIPS 



485 



In the London market-gardens, 

 Parsnips are always sown as soon 

 after the middle of February as 

 possible, provided the ground is 

 moderately dry and warm, and 

 crumbles freely with the fork. Pre- 

 paratory to sowing, the ground is 

 levelled, and the soil well broken 

 in the operation, and finished off by 

 raking the surface smooth with a 

 wooden rake. Shallow drills are 

 then drawn for the seeds at about 

 1 8 or 20 in. apart ; and after being 

 sown they are covered in by the feet 

 or the back of a rake, and the whole 

 is smoothly rolled. Sometimes white 

 or green Cos Lettuces have been 

 planted in rows at those distances, 

 and the Parsnips sown in lines 

 between them. In either case, 

 Lettuces are planted if not first, 

 they are put in afterwards ; and as 

 the Parsnips take a long time to 

 germinate, the Lettuces are removed 

 before they can injure them. As 

 soon as the Parsnips are fairly up 

 and growing, they are thinned out a 

 little, and when well established, 

 they are finally thinned to 9 in. 

 apart. The Lettuces, when mar- 



ketable, are tied up and removed 

 before they can choke or otherwise 

 injure the Parsnips, which after- 

 wards soon grow rapidly, no further 

 care than occasional hoeing being 

 then bestowed upon them. The 

 bulk of roots per acre is enormous, 

 many of the specimens measuring 

 individually 7 and 8 in. in diameter 

 at the shoulder, and 20 to 24 in. 

 in length. The variety grown in 

 market - gardens is the Hollow- 

 crown, a capital sort that produces 

 roots from 4 to 6 in. in diameter at 

 top, and from 10 to 20 in. in 

 length ; and the crowns are, as a 

 rule, buried a little below the surface 

 soil. Parsnips are not brought to 

 market much before November, 

 unless the demand for them is 

 great and prices high. But from 

 that time until the middle of 

 February they are in fine market- 

 able condition, and, being always 

 left in the land where they grow, 

 are lifted as required. Being 

 thus left undisturbed, they preserve 

 their flavour much better than 

 they do when lifted and stored 

 in pits. 



USES. The roots are boiled, and are often used for flavouring 

 broth or soup without being eaten. They also form an excellent 

 food for horses, and are extensively used for that purpose in 

 districts where Parsnips are easily and successfully grown, as in 

 Brittany. 



Long Parsnip. This form, which comes the nearest to the Wild 

 Parsnip, is now very little grown. It is characterised by having a 

 very long root, often 16 in. in length, deeply sunk in the ground, 

 and an elongated conical neck. 



The Improved Brest Parsnip is a thicker and shorter form of the 

 old Long Parsnip. It also has a conical neck and a wrinkled skin. 

 It has the advantage of being productive, while the roots are more 

 easily pulled than those of the old variety ; however, the following 

 kind is far superior to it. 



Long Smooth Hollow-crown Parsnip. A fine strain, some- 

 times confounded with the Half-long Hollow-crown, or Student, 

 Parsnip, but quite distinct from it, requiring a deeper soil and being 



