Root Crops and How to Grow Them 217 



RUTABAGAS 



Rutabagas or " Swedes " are grown much the same as 

 fall crops of turnips, but as they require about 90 days 

 to reach maturity, the seed should be planted three or 

 four weeks earlier in summer. The best crops are pro- 

 duced in the northern states in sections having cool 

 summers. The roots are larger than turnips, and they 

 keep somewhat longer in storage than do most other 

 root crops. Rutabagas are much used for feeding stock 

 and poultry, and they are excellent food for human beings. 

 They are especially pleasing in a " boiled dinner." The 

 Improved Purple Top and the Golden Heart are excellent 

 varieties for the family garden. 



GARDEN BEETS 



Seed catalogues list about 12 varieties of table beets, 

 differing to some extent in shape, color, size, and flavor, 

 as well as in the time required for proper growth. Al- 

 though these beets are to be classed as essentially cool- 

 season crops, they thrive during summer, especially in 

 the more northern planting zones. 



For the first planting, sow seeds of an early variety 

 like Crosby's Egyptian about the time of the latest frost. 

 This will furnish tender, partly grown roots for use during 

 summer. Successive plantings of this variety may be 

 made for later use, but the latest date of planting should 

 be about 60 days before the first killing frost of autumn. 



In the lower altitudes of the southern parts of Arizona 

 and California and in the Gulf States, seeds sown in 

 September will yield roots that may be left in the ground 



