Chap. II. iUTA BAGACUITUKE. 95 



76. But, it ought to be observed, that this was 

 in ground which liad been got up in my best man- 

 ner ; that it had some of the best of my manure ; 

 and that uncommon pains were taken by myself in 

 the putting in of the plants. This experiment shows, 

 what a hardy plant this is ; but, I must caution the 

 teader against a belief, that it is either desirable or 

 prudent to put this quality to so severe a test. 

 There is no necessity for it, in general ; and, in- 

 deed, the rule is, that the shorter time the plants 

 are out of the ground the better. 



77. But, as to the business of transplanting^ 

 there is one very material observation to make. 

 The ground ought to be us fresh; that is to say, as 

 recently moved by the plough, as possible ; and that 

 for the reasons before stated. The way I go on is 

 this : My land is put up into ridges, as describee^ 

 under the head of manner of sowing. This is done 

 beforehand. Several days ; or, it may be, a week 

 or more. When we have our plants and hands all 

 ready, the ploughman begins and turns in the ridg: 

 es ; that is to say, ploughs the ground back again^ 

 so that the top of the new ploughed ridge stands 

 over the place where the channel, or gutter, or 

 deep furrow, was, before he began. As soon as he 

 has finished the first ridge, the planters plant it, 

 while he is ploughing the second : and so on 

 throughout the field. That this is not a very tedi- 

 ous process the reader needs only to be told, that,. 

 in 1816, 1 ha6 fifty trt'o acres of RutaBaga planted in 

 this way ; and I think I had more than fifty thousand 

 bushels. A smart hand will plant half an acre a 

 day, with a girl or boy to drop the plants for him, 

 I had a man, who planted an acre a day, many a 

 time. But, supposing, that a quarter pf an acre is 

 a day's work. What are four days'' work when put 

 in competition with the value of an acre of this in- 

 valuable root ? And what farmer is there, who 

 bas common industry, who would grudge to beiiU 



