286 



Quality of Swedes. 



[AUG., 



8-inch hoe and the other with a 62--inch hoe, the difference in 

 the number of plants on these two acres would be 6,700 ; 

 while on an acre with drills 24 inches apart and hoed with 

 the 6i-inch hoe, the plants would exceed in number those on 

 the first acre by over 11,000. Large roots mean large feeding 

 areas and few plants, with correspondingly watery contents. 

 Since equal and even greater weights can be raised from 

 medium bulbs, it is evident that a much larger weight of 

 feeding material can be obtained from them. The best 

 results, too, derived from limiting the growing area, will 

 probably be obtained from varieties with a strong hereditary 

 tendency to grow large, such as the Premier, Conqueror, Magnum 

 Bonum, and those proved by the tests to be heavy croppers. 

 Some varieties — as, for example, Aberdeenshire Prize — have a 

 marked tendency to produce a large mass of shaws ; while 

 others— as, for example, Sutton's Queen — are characterized by 

 their small leafage. In fact, this is a special peculiarity of the 

 Queen, and makes this variety eminently suitable for the above 

 treatment, the more especially as the luxuriance of the shaws 

 bears no relation to the weight of the feeding material of the 

 crop. A small leafage would go far to counteract the possible 

 occurrence of mildew. 



In this connection some experiments conducted by the Uni- 

 versity College, Reading, may be mentioned. Plots on twenty- 

 four farms in Berks, Bucks, Dorset, and Oxon were selected, 

 each representing twelve drills 30 yards long. The drills were 

 not of the same width, varying from 17 to 27 inches, the 

 majority being about 20 inches apart. It was intended to have 

 the plants left at distances of 6, 11, 16, and 21 inches apart in 

 the rows respectively, but very great difficulty was experienced 

 in leaving the plants at these distances exactly, and at the end 

 of the trials they were found to average 85, 11, 16, and 18 inches 

 respectively. 



More than 75,000 roots were counted and weighed, and the 

 average weights at the different distances are given on the 

 next page. 



The narrowest drilling was found to give the greatest yield 

 per acre. If swedes are reckoned as worth los. a ton, a crop of 

 roots grown Sh inches apart in the rows is worth about £1 per 



