408 VEGETABLE GARDENING 



The soil should be thoroughly prepared before sowing. 

 From ^ to I inch of soil is sufficient covering. As the 

 seedlings are very small and delicate at first, it is cus- 

 tomary to use plenty of new seed, and then thin the 

 plants to 6 or 7 inches in strong soils and 4 or 5 in poorer 

 ones. There should be 15 to 18 inches between rows for 

 wheel-hoe cultivation, and 2 feet or more when horse 

 implements are to be used. 



The roots may be used any time after they have 

 reached maturity. Most gardeners who grow them in 

 large amounts dig part of the crop in the fall, burying 

 the roots in the ground or storing them in pits, caves or 

 cellars. To prevent drying and shriveling in storage, they 

 should be covered with moist sand or soil. As the* roots 

 are perfectly hardy in all parts of the North, the greater 

 part of the crop is usually left in the ground where it 

 was grown until suitable weather for digging the follow- 

 ing spring. Freezing improves the quality (although this 

 idea is sometimes refuted). The roots come out of the 

 ground in a bright, fresh condition, and are salable on 

 most markets. Parsnips are easily grown, and all mar- 

 kets should be well supplied. 



PEA (Pisum sativum) 



553. History. — Decandolle ("Origin of Cultivated 

 Plants," p. 330) makes the following statement in re- 

 gard to the origin of the garden pea: "The species 

 seems to have existed in western Asia, perhaps from the 

 south of the Caucasus to Persia, before it was cultivated. 

 The Aryans introduced it into Europie, but it perhaps 

 existed in northern India before the arrival of the east- 

 ern Aryans. It no longer exists in a wild state, and 

 when it occurs in fields, half-wild, it is not said to have 

 a modified form so as to approach some other species." 



554. Importance. — The pea is one of the important 



