ORIGIN AND HISTORY OF OUR GARDEN VEGETABLES. 125 



four or five inches round " (fig. 57, B). The following are some con- 

 spicuous differences between the wild parsnip and the " Student " : — 



The root of a wild plant grown by the roadside in Dorset had a 

 tough, wiry root, tapering somewhat from the crown. The leaves had 

 petioles nine inches long, the leaflets being from one to two inches ; the 

 larger one three-quarters of an inch broad, and all pubescent or softly 

 hairy. The sheath at the base of the petiole was one and a half inch 

 long, the first pair of leaflets being four inches above it. 



The leaf of the ' ' Student ' ' is two feet long ; the first pair of leaflets 

 several inches above the sheath. They are oblong, about two inches 



A B 

 Fig. 57. 



A. — Third generation of parsnip from seed of wild plant (1847) cultivated 



by Professor Buckman. The origin of " The Student " length). 



B. — ."The Student" parsnip, twenty-eighth generation (1903) from the 



wild plant (^ length and width) ; still one of the most useful in the 

 trade (1910). 



across at the basal part, and four and a half inches in length, and 

 smooth. 



There are considerable differences between the above and the leaf 

 of the old type of parsnip grown in the middle of the last century. The 

 sheath of the leaf of this was very large, and reached up to the first 

 pair of leaflets. These are much broader at the base, making them 

 more oval, the lower ones being five inches long, the whole length of 

 the petiole being about sixteen inches. Lastly, the serrations are coarser 

 than those of the " Student," which imitates the wild plant more 

 closely. 



