9 BULLETIN 503, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, 
for the lack of a more exact yet simple word, and is here used be- 
cause of its convenience as a general descriptive term. 
As a whole, “succulent roots” and “starchy roots,”’! the two 
great groups into which edible roots are commonly divided, together 
constitute one of the most important sources of food. 
The succulent vegetables owe their popularity in considerable 
measure to their good keeping qualities. After harvesting in the 
late autumn, they will keep in a cellar, or other cool storage place, 
for a long time in reasonably good condition, though as the season 
advances they may become somewhat tough and strong in flavor. It 
is a common custom in the Northern States to store such vegetables 
in sand rather than in bins or boxes, and some sorts, such as parsnips 
and oyster plant, are frequently left in the ground and dug in early 
spring. In the parts of the United States where the weather is mild 
and yet too cool to permit growth, this is an especially common 
method of keeping winter vegetables, for it is possible to dig them 
at almost any time during the winter. 
Now that cold storage and improved methods of idinponntes 
have made it easily possible to secure a greater variety of vegetables 
at all times of the year than was formerly the case, the stored root 
vegetables are relatively less important. This does not mean that 
their use is likely to disappear, but rather that the northern markets 
are being supplied also with more delicate varieties; for instance, 
small tender beets, which many would prefer to the larger and 
tougher ones commonly stored for winter use. In southern markets 
one can obtain such vegetables fresh a good part of the year. 
The usefulness of root vegetables is not limited to their under- 
eround portions, since in many cases the leaves and stems, when 
young and tender, are good as potherbs. Most commonly used are 
beet tops and turnip tops, but radish and horse-radish leaves also 
make good “ greens,” especially for mixing with greens of milder 
flavor, and occasionally carrot tops are also used for this purpose. 
The careful housekeeper who buys beets and turnips by the bunch 
will save and use the tops for greens. If she has a garden she will 
use the young plants when they are thinned out, and may also often 
get a dish of greens by picking tender leaves here and there from her 
garden bed of beets or turnips. The young green tops of onions are 
much used for seasoning and are also tender and palatable when 
cooked as a vegetable. Celeriac tops, too, are useful as a seasoning. 
Most of the common succulent vegetables—turnips, beets, parsnips, 
carrots, etc.—are biennial plants, and if by any chance the roots re- 
17The nutritive value and uses of starchy roots have been discussed in U. S. Dept. 
Agr. Bul. 468 (1916). Recipes for preparing such vegetables for the table will be found 
in U. S. Dept. Agr. Farmers’ Bul. 256 (1906). 
