THE ECONOMIC PLANTS OF JAPAN. 



387 



branches were accordingly cut down and careful measure- 

 ment made, which showed that that summer's growth had 

 reached a total length of 4, 275 feet. It covered 400 square 

 feet of the piazza-front with a dense net-work of branches 

 and leaves. It was again cut back severely, so that only 

 from twelve to twenty feet were left of each of the lead- 

 ing branches. In 1888 the growth was even greater. 

 Cut down and separated as before the total growth of 

 that year measured the astonishing length of 6,300 feet. 

 Having thus become familar with its habits and in a 

 measure attached to its robust homeliness, it was with no 



PUERARIA THUNBbRGIANA. 



little gratification that I found on my arrival here a 

 similiar vine draping the doorway of the house I was to 

 occupy. The vine grows here with its wonted vigor, 

 though It is not equal in that respect to its fellow in 

 Japan. It appears to be entirely hardy, as it has never 

 been protected though the temperature occasionally 

 reaches 20° below zero. The unmatured shoots die 

 every winter, but they should always be removed, 

 whether they die or not, in order to facilitate training. 



The flowers are not striking. They occur in large, 

 purple spikes in the axils of the leaves in August, but 

 only on wood several years old. The lower flowers on 



the spikes fade before the upper ones open, and those 

 which prove fertile are followed by a large, flat pod. 



The root, which is always fleshy, is of variable shape. 

 Sometimes it is comparatively short and compact, as 

 shown in the illustration, but 1 have also seen it spread 

 out in all directions, the fleshy portion of each of the 

 main branches being from four to five feet long, as thick 

 as a man's arm in the middle and tapering to both ends. 



The wild plants are dug for these roots, and often with 

 great difficulty. When a sufficient quantity of them has 

 been gathered, they are cleaned, cut in pieces, crushed, 

 and the starch washed out and allowed to settle to the 

 bottom of the tub. The starch is then purified by repeated 

 washmgs and when dried is a fine, pure white article, 

 which IS much esteemed for food. In the drawings 

 here shown t h e root and 

 flower - spike are both re- 

 duced in size. 



Raphanus s.ativa,L.; Jap. 

 Daikon. The giant Japan- 

 ese radish belongs to this 

 species. There are but few 

 vegetables in the country 

 that are so universally es- 

 teemed as this radish. It is 

 relished alike by rich and poor, and is 

 cultivated from one end of the country 

 to the other. It is not certainly known 

 that the species is indigenous. There is a 

 probability that it has been imported from 

 China, but it has been cultivated in Japan 

 for many centuries, and become well-nigh 

 indispensable to all classes of the Japanese. 

 Scarcely a meal is eaten which is not ac- 

 panied by a preparation of this radish. 

 To the poor, especially, it is an important 

 article of food because of its 

 cheapness. It is for the most 

 part made into a condiment 

 called okoko, which is inva- 

 riably eaten with boiled rice, 

 and prepared by pack- 

 ig the roots in brine, 

 m this form every 

 household keeps a 

 supply of the vegeta- 

 ble the year round. 

 The daikon is of rapid growth, being full-grown in 

 from 60 to 100 days from the time of sowing. It can be 

 grown all summer, but the main crop is sown from July 

 15 to August 15. The method of culture is the same in 

 all cases. The seed is sown thinly in rows two feet apart, 

 and when well up the plants are thinned to suit the size 

 of the variety, the largest one and one-half to two 

 feet apart in the row. The crop is usually manured two 

 or three times with liquid manure, which is carried to 

 the field in large buckets slung on the ends of a pole and 

 borne on the shoulder. A fair average yield is about 

 tea tons per acre. There are a large number of varie- 



