138 



KITCHEN GARDEN PLANTS. 



[chap. 



delicate greens for use in March, a few of these might find a place 

 in a garden. It is true that they are to be found upon almost every 

 farm ; but you must go to the farm to get them, and get leave to 

 take them into the bargain ; so that a couple of rows across one 

 of the plats ought to find a place in the garden. The garden- 

 turnip is called the stone-turnip by some ; by others, the early 

 white Dutch-turnip ; some say that they are both the same ; there 

 is another turnip which has a long and taper root, and not a large 

 bulb in proportion ; and this is called, in Hampshire at least, the 

 mouse-tailed turnip. But the finest turnip for eating that I ever 

 saw, I never yet saw in England. It is a little flat turnip. The 

 bulb lies almost wholly upon the top of the ground, sending down, 

 from the centre of it, a slender tap. This bulb is about four or 

 five inches in diameter in general, and not above two inches 

 through in depth. The flesh is of a deep yellow colour. This sort 

 of turnip is in universal use throughout the northern states of 

 America. Some farmers in England cultivate the yellow Scotch 

 turnip, as it is called ; and if this turnip really did come from 

 Scotland, there is something good that is Scotch, at any rate. This 

 yellow turnip is cultivated in Herefordshire under the name of the 

 ox turnip ; and I remember that Mr. PalmePc of BoUitree told me 

 that it far exceeded, in point of richness, and in point of standing 

 the weather, all other turnips except the Swedish : I think his 

 account was, that weight for weight, it was half way 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 ; 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 principle 

 of causing growth by tillage. For autumnal and winter use, tur- 

 nips are very good and very convenient, seeing that they may be 



