156 THE DOMESTCC SHEEP. 



growth is sufficiently strong to prevent the injury of others 

 to be left, by the disturbance of the soil about them. 

 For a small crop of an acre or two, the culture may be 

 made most conveniently by means of hand implements, 

 seed drill and cultivator, and the thinning of the plants 

 may be done most easily by running the hand cultivator 

 across the rows cutting out the plants in the ten inch spaces, 

 leaving four inches undisturbed with the plants thereon. 

 This saves much handwork and time otherwise spent. The 

 land needs to be clean at the start, made so most conven- 

 iently by taking a crop of corn previously, which sho.uld be 

 carefully kept free from weeds as a preliminary to this 

 following crop. 



Before the plants meet in the rows, the leaves covering 

 the intermediate spaces, culture "may cease, and the crop 

 will take care of itself. When ready for harvesting the crop 

 is gathered in the following manner: With a sharp hoe, 

 ground to a fine cutting edge, one goes down a row chopping 

 off the tops and drawing them into the row in which he is 

 walking. He returns up the next row cutting the tops in 

 the same way, thus gathering the tops of two rows into one. 



Another goes through the rows following the first one, 

 and with a blunt, three-pronged hook, draws out the roots 

 and leaves them in the vacant row next to that in which 

 the leaves are gathered. Returning as before described, the 

 workman takes the next row 7 leaving the roots with those 

 in the previous row. Thus there are double rows in the 

 field, one of the tops and one of the roots. It is best to do 

 this work when the land is dry, and the roots are clean 

 and free from excess of soil. The tops are gathered and 

 may be heaped in the field on high ground, where water will 

 not lodge, and covered, first with straw and then with soil, 

 sufficient to preserve them from a possible frost. The roots 

 are gathered in the same way and so protected until they 

 may be finally taken to a cellar or put away in pits in the 

 field. This is done by heaping them in piles of ten or twenty 

 bushels, and covering them with straw, and then with soil 

 sufficient to protect them through the Winter. Eight inches 

 of straw and the same of earth over this will serve to keep 

 them safely. 



Roots improve by keeping in this way through the Win- 



