252 SUGAR BEETS AND OTHER ROOT CROPS 



Kohlrabi (Fig. 176) is a little more suited than cabbage to hot, 

 dry climates of the southern states. This crop is usually drilled 

 in rows about twenty-four inches apart, leaving room for cultiva- 

 tion. Thinning may be practiced to let the plants stand in the 

 row about eight to ten inches apart. 



Both these crops should be given frequent and thorough tillage 

 during the early part of the growing season. After the leaves 

 shade the ground, cultivation may be less frequent. 



These crops are easily stored in long trenches on well drained 

 knolls where the heads are carefully placed, roots upward, and 





FIG. 176. A thrifty plant of kohlrabi. The hard central portion is used in much the same 

 manner as turnips. (Productive Vegetable Growing.) 



then covered with corn stalks or coarse straw, and then with soil 

 enough to prevent severe freezing. If there be warm spells after 

 the crop is stored, there may be some damage from rotting. For 

 this reason, root cellars are more satisfactory for the storage of 

 these crops. 



FIELD AND LABORATORY EXERCISES 



1. Sugar from Beets. In the regions of beet sugar factories, methods of 

 extracting the sugar should be studied. 



2. The management of the beet crop from the time it is shipped to the 

 factory until it is made into sugar should be observed and reported. 



3. Beet Relationships. Compare the leaves and other parts of the plants 

 and note the resemblance of sugar beets, mangel-wurzel, spinach, Swiss chard 

 and garden beet. 



