304 THE TURNIP CROP, 



most vigorous is left uninjured in the drill. This is clearly 

 work more suited to the child than to the adult; and with 

 proper showing and moderate supervision, with the en- 

 couragement of an extra penny to the most careful workers 

 it can generally be satisfactorily carried out, at a cost not 

 exceeding that of the ordinary method, and with greater 

 chances of a productive crop. Whether for ' ' horse-hoeing/' 

 ''bunching," or "singling" with the hoe or the hand, it is 

 essential that the soil should be in a dry condition a few 

 days' delay is of far less importance than this important 

 condition. 



In fixing the distances at which the plants should 

 be- left in the drills, we have to consider the nature 

 and condition of the soil, the habit of growth of the 

 turnip, the distance between the rows, and the time at 

 which it is sown. If we take 12 inches as our average, 

 on good soils we should perhaps give a little more, and 

 on the poorer class of soils a little less. Varieties with 

 large spreading tops require more space than those with 

 a more erect and confined habit of growth. Where the 

 lateral spaces (between the rows) is less, the linear dis- 

 tance (in the rows) should be more; and lastly, a late- 

 sown crop has not the same powers of development, and 

 therefore needs less space, and can be safely left closer in 

 the drill. All these points a thinking farmer settles for 

 himself, and, according to the ever- varying circumstances 

 of the case, gives his directions, even should they differ 

 from the common practice of his district. 



In the Book of the Farm, vol. i. p. 204, Mr. Stephens 

 gives in a tabular form the number of turnips there should 

 be on an acre at given distances between the drills, and 

 between the plants in the drills, and of the weight of the 

 crop at specified weights of each turnip. The table, which 

 may afford us some assistance on the points in question, is 

 given in next page. 



