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IX. — On the Cultivation of Field-beet {Mangold-wurzel) . 

 Bj George Edmund Raynbird. 



Prize Essay. 



The farmers of Scotland and the north of England are proverb- 

 ially famous for the superior management of the turnip crop ; 

 they often astonish their brethren who reside in the dry southern 

 or eastern counties with reports of crops, the weight of which it 

 would be vain for those to attempt to equal who live in a less fa- 

 vourable climate for the luxuriant growth of the turnip crop. "^I he 

 turnip, whether swede, white, or hybrid, succeeds best in a humid 

 climate, and hence some of the superiority of our northern bre- 

 thren ; but though we are obliged to confess that we cannot equal 

 them in turnip cultivation, yet in the cultivation of beet the 

 farmers of the south, particularly those of the eastern counties, 

 will challenge competition with not only the north, but with the 

 whole of England. Beet, unlike the turnip, grows to the greatest 

 perfection where the climate is dry and warm, and therefore we 

 must not attribute all the merit of our large crops to superior 

 management, but rather to the genial climate, which is so favour- 

 able to this root. 



A wild and worthless variety of beet grows naturally on the 

 sandy shores of the sea ; and it is found that beet flourishes with 

 luxuriance in the country closely adjoining the coast. 



Having thus briefly considered the climate most favourable to 

 the growth of the subject of our inquiries, we shall proceed to 

 describe — 



1 . The Soils best adapted for Beet. 



It will be found, like most other plants, to produce the greatest 

 bulk on a rich loamy soil that is neither too retentive nor too loose in 

 its texture; it is not, however, at all peculiar to a particular soil. 

 It will flourish on retentive clays that are unsuited to the growth 

 of the turnip, better than it does on very light siliceous soils that 

 are more favourable to the turnip and carrot. On peaty 

 land, it is grown with much better chances of a good crop than 

 the turnip ; and it succeeds pretty well on stonebrash. 



The soils which may be considered adapted for beet are — 



1 . Rich loam. 



2. Clayey loam. 



3. Loamy sands and gravels, or mixed soils. 



4. Good peat or alluvial soil. 



5. Sandy soils in the neighbourhood of the sea. 



6. Calcareous soils that do not contain too great a proportion 



of lime ; 



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