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are three feet in length, showing how deep the soil 

 has been worked, but roots as long as this are generally 

 coarse and " watery ". Good, well-flavoured roots, 

 with a marrow-like flesh when cooked, should be of 

 medium size and length. Thus it is unwise to sow 

 seed on ground that has been recently well manured ; 

 indeed, if following some other well-manured crop then 

 are conditions far more favourable for the production 

 of good, edible roots. Because the Parsnip is hardy, 

 seed is sown as early as February and March, but the 

 wiser course is to hold over the sowing until the end 

 of April, as then growth is more continuous, and the 

 roots are smaller. The roots are so hardy that they 

 may be left in the ground all the winter, being lifted for 

 cooking as needed. To protect the crowns draw some 

 soil in ridge form over them in November, and to 

 enable this to be done lift and store every alternate 

 row in dry sand in a cool place for the winter, and 

 thus ensure an ample supply during severe weather. 

 The best varieties are the Hollow Crown, Tender 

 and True, a somewhat " coloured " selection from 

 this variety, and the Student, an old but excellent Pars- 

 nip. Sow seed thinly in shallow drills, drawn with a 

 hoe fourteen inches apart, and when the plants are well 

 up thin them out to six inches apart. The only after 

 attention necessary is to keep them clear by frequent 

 hoeing for the rest of the season. It is a common 

 practice, when the ground is naturally stiff, to make 

 holes two feet deep in rows, and fill them with sifted 

 soil, then sow three seeds on the top, thinning the plants 



