KITCHEN-GARDEN PLANTS. CHAP. 



rernember that Mr. PALMER of Bollitree told me that it 

 far exceeded, in point of richness, and in point of stand- 

 ing the weather, all other turnips, except the Swedish : 

 I think his account was, that, weight for weight, it was 

 halfway between the common turnip and the Swedish, 

 as food for cattle. However, the chances are that, as 

 people like white better than yellow in a turnip, they will 

 prefer the early white Dutch or early stone to any other. 

 The manner of propagating and cultivating all the sorts 

 is the same. Spring turnips, or, rather, early summer 

 turnips, are very poor things : the plant must have cold 

 weather, to make it really good : do what you will, it 

 will be hot if you have it to eat in the early part of the 

 summer j but, if you wish to have them at that time, you 

 must sow them in March. The manner of sowing is, 

 in shallow drills a foot or fifteen inches apart, and the 

 plants thinned to eight or nine inches in the row. The 

 fly, or, rather, the flea, is apt to take them off, and, in 

 that case, there is no remedy but sowing again. The 

 ground between them should be kept clean, and it should 

 not be fresh dunged, for that will be sure to make them 

 rank and hot. Depend rather upon the TULLIAN prin- 

 ciple of causing growth by tillage. For autumnal and 

 winter use, turnips are very good and very convenient, 

 seeing that they may be so easily preserved from the 

 frost, even in the severest winters. To insure a crop, 

 you should sow in the last week of July, or the first of 

 August, in the south of England, and a week or two 

 earlier, towards the north. It is a very good way to sow 

 again in the last week of August, especially in good and 

 warm soil, for these will be sound in the month of 

 March, and, if the winter be mild, quite large enough, 



