190 



Boot Crops 



introduced and extensively spread in North America. There 

 are apparently points of difference between the domesticated 

 and wild plant aside from the thickened root of the former. 

 The flower-head of the garden carrot is likely to be globular, 

 as are also the umbellets, rather than flat or saucer-form, as 

 in the wild plant. The foliage, particularly in virgin plants, 

 seems to have peculiarities between the two. (The word 

 Carota is Latin for carrot, and from which the English word 

 is derived.) 



PARSNIP 



A cool very deep rich open soil and one that does not 

 " t)a}ce " over the seeds and a full-length season are requi- 

 sites for parsnip-growing. Seeds are sown where the crop 

 is to stand. Tlie plant is liardy. 



The seeds of parsnips germinate slowly, and retain their 

 vitality only a year or two ; therefore they should be sown 

 thickly. Seeds are usually sown in drills far enough apart to 

 allow of wheel-hoe or horse tillage, and the young plants are 

 thinned to stand about 6 to 8 in. in the row. In gardens, 

 the rows may be 14 to 18 in. apart ; in field culture with 

 horse tillage, 24 to 30 in. The seed is covered % in. to 1 in. 

 with earth. One ounce of fresh seed is used to 200 to 2.50 

 feet of drill ; 4 to 6 lbs. are generally sown to the acre. A good 

 crop is .500 to 600 bushels to the acre, but more than this is 

 obtained under the best conditions. 



There are no menacing diseases of parsnips, and the insects 

 are mostly those of carrots (which see). The larvae of the 

 black swallow-tail butterfly sometimes attack parsnips; see 

 under Celery ; also carrot rust-fly and beetle. 



Paesxip webwoem (Depressaria Tiey^acliana) . — Small green- 

 ish yellow caterpillars, that web together and devour the 

 unfolding blossom-heads of parsnip and celery, greatly de- 

 creasing the seed crop. The parent moths hibernate under 

 flakes of bark, and on emerging deposit their eggs on the 



