favourable for the Groirtli of Seed. 
00 
which is lavouiahlo — 1 mi<);ht say, essential — for some districts, 
is ;ilt()g('th(n- unsuitcd to others. Thus, from early in May to the 
middle of July, swedes are beinf»- sown according to local opinions. 
The principal cause of this is the mildew, which the swedes 
sufler from if their growth experiences a sudden check ; but, 
whilst local peculiarities do exist and exert their influence upon 
the time of sowing, yet I am bound to say that as the system of 
cultivation is improved and the land is more thoroughly worked, the 
sowings may be made at an earlier date with far greater safety. 
Mangold-Wurzcl. — This root is better adapted for strong soils 
than the swede, and possesses greater powers of growth through a 
retentive soil than any of our root-crops. The looseness and fria- 
bility of soil, which were necessary for the turnip and swede, are 
not necessary in this case except in a very reduced degree, and 
for this reason a course of preparation answers very well for the 
mangold which would not do for any other root. There are two 
modes of preparing for this crop. The one is a complete autumn 
preparation, so that the dung is ploughed in and the land ridged- 
up for the seed before winter, whilst the other leaves the applica- 
tion of the manure and the tillage of the land to be finished in 
the spring. Each of these plans has its respective advantages. 
The autumn preparation influences the mechanical condition 
of the land by exposing the surface of the land to the winter 
frosts, whereby it is crumbled into a fine and loose seed-bed, 
whilst the manure beneath prevents the soil from becoming too 
consolidated, with the additional advantage that you are ready 
to sow in good time, and can ensure that the land shall be in 
good comlition for the seed even when other ground cannot be 
touched. The surface-soil, which the winter has brought into 
such good order, generally retains its character, unless it is 
worked by some implement which smears and glazes the surface, 
but this must be carefully avoided. This autumn preparation is 
easily completed in unfavourable seasons by dibbling the seed by 
hand. If the spring weather is unpropitious, there is great diffi- 
culty in then completing the necessary preparations for sowing in 
good season, and especially in securing a nice fine covering for 
the seed, which is not the less essential, because at a later stage 
the roots luxuriate in a strong soil, such as cannot always be 
brought to a fine tilth by spring culture. On such soils this is 
often a great difficulty. 
Early sowing is of great importance for this crop. The 
usual season is from the middle of April to the middle of 
May, and for the heavy crops we must not trust to late sowings. 
The growth of the seed may be promoted by steeping it in 
water for a few hours before it is planted. This will soften 
the skin and render germination more rapid. After this has 
