466 



T U K 



TUR 



except thinning and once hoeing. 

 The crops were so much better 

 than 1 have obtained from broad 

 cast sowing, that 1 am induced to 

 persist in, and recommend this 

 uielhod. 



A crop of turnips in tlie oid hus- 

 bandry prepares tlie ground excel- 

 lerttl) for a crop of wheat, or flax, 

 the following year. But it would 

 be in much better order, if the 

 turnif)S were horse-hoed. 



In other countries, they feed the 

 tnrni{)s ofTof the ground with sheep ; 

 or draw them up for neat cattle, 

 through the winter, as fast as they 

 are wanted ; and even let them 

 stand until spring, when it is con- 

 venient. 



But in this country, they must be 

 harvested in autumn, about the 

 end of October, or even eailier in 

 some places ; and then stored in 

 cellars, out of the way of the frost; 

 which must needs be a drawback 

 on the profit of this crop. Those 

 that are designed for the table in 

 winter, should be buried in, or co- 

 vered with, dry pit sand, to pre- 

 vent their becoming corky. 



The most excellent mutton is 

 fatted on turnips, and they are a 

 good food for horned cattle. But 

 milch cows should not be fed very 

 plentifully on turnips, as there is 

 some danger of their giving the 

 milk an ill taste. 



To produce good turnip seeds, 

 some of the best roots, of the mid- 

 dlirig size, which have begun to 

 sprout, should be planted early in 

 the spring, in a good spot, free from 

 shade. They should be in rows, 

 eighteen inches asunder, and the 

 ground must be kept clear of weeds 



till the seed is ripe. Stakes and 

 laths may be needful round the 

 outside, to keep the branches from 

 falling to the ground before the 

 seed is fully ripe. 



The right culture of the French 

 turnip is much the same as the 

 above, excepting that they should be 

 allowed more room, and that the 

 ground should be tilled to a greater 

 depth than is necessary for the 

 other sort, and sowed at the end of 

 June. 



They should not be sown in the 

 spring; for this will make them 

 hard and sticky ; nor more than 

 about a month earlier than other 

 fall turnips. I have known it an- 

 swer well to sow both kinds mixed 

 together, where the soil has been 

 mellow and deep. But I rather 

 prefer sowing each kind by itself; 

 because the one requires to be ear- 

 lier sowed than the other. 



As there are some other insects 

 which prey upon turnips,|besides the 

 fly, while they are in seed leaf or 

 afterwards, it has led some to set 

 plants of tobacco, perhaps six or 

 eight feet apart, among their tur- 

 nips, wliich is thought to have an 

 excellent eflfect. 



Mr. M. Mahon gives the follow- 

 ing directions for the field culture 

 of turnips. 



" The ground intended for the 

 production of turnips in the ensu- 

 ing season ought to be deeply 

 ploughed in October or November, 

 and to be left in that rough state, 

 to receive the benefits of the win- 

 ter frosts, &c. In the April fol- 

 lowing, when it is perfectly dry, 

 harrow it, and let it lie so till the. 

 middle of May, when it should 



