RAP 
RAP 
being fown, quickly puts forth out of the ground.] , 
Radifh ; in French, Raifort. 
The Characters are. 
The e?Hpalement of the flower is ereSi , and compofed of 
four oblong leaves. The flower has four heart Jhaped pe- 
tals , placed in form of a crofs , which fpredd open , and 
■are narrow at their bafe ; it hath four honey glands , one 
on each fide the floor t ft amina between them and the flyle, 
and one between each of the long ft amina and the empale- 
ment ; it hath fix flhort ftamina which are eredl ; two 
which are cppofite , are the length of the empalement , the 
other four are as long as the bafe of the petals , terminated 
by Jingle fimmits , and an oblong fwelling germen nar- 
rowed the length of the ftamina , with fcarce any flyle, 
crowned by a headed ftigma. The germen afterward be- 
comes an oblong , fnooth , flpongy pod having an acute 
point , fwelling and almoft jointed , having two cells di- 
vided by an intermediate partition , and filled with round- 
ifh feeds. 
This genus of plants is ranged in the fecond fection 
of Linnteus’s fifteenth clais, which contains thofe 
plants whofe flowers have four long and two fhorter 
ftamina, and their feeds are included in pods. 
The Species are, 
1. Raphanus ( Sativus ) filiquis teretibus torofis bilocu- 
laribus. Hort. Clift'. 340. Radiflo with taper pods, hav- 
ing two cells. Kaphanus minor oblongus. C. B. P. 96. 
Smaller oblong Radijh , or the common Radijh. 
2. Raphanus {Rotundas') radice rotunda. Round-rooted 
Radijh , or fmall , round , Naples Radijh. 
3. Raphanus {Orbiculatis) radice orbiculata deprefsa. 
Radijh with an orbicular deprejjed root. Raphanus 
major, orbicularis vel rotundus. C. B. P. 96. Greater 
orbicular , or round Radijh , commonly called Turnep- 
r 00 ted, or white Spanijh Radiflo. 
4. Raphanus {Niger) radice fufiformi. Radiflo with a 
fpindle-floaped root. /Raphanus niger. C. B. P. 96. The 
black Spanijh Radijh. 
5. Raphanus ( Chincnjus ) oleiferus. Lin. Sp. 935. Chi- 
na oily Radiflo. 
6. Raphanus {Raphaniftrum) filiquis teretibus articula- 
tis Itsvibus unilocularibus. Hort, Cliff. 340. Radiflo 
with flmooth, toper, jointed pods having one cell. Ra- 
piftrum fiore albo, filiqua articulata. C.B.P. 95. White 
floivering Charlock with a jointed pod. 
The laft fort grows naturally on arable lands in many 
parts of Europe, fo isfeldom admitted into gardens. 
The other five forts are luppofed to be only femi- 
nal variations •, but from forty years experience, I have 
never found either of theie to vary from one to the 
other fort ; and I am certain whoever will make the 
trial, by faving the feeds of each carefully without 
mixture, will always find the plants prove the fame 
as the feeds were faved from. 
The firft fort here mentioned is that which is common- 
ly cultivated in kitchen-gardens for its root, of which 
there are feveral varieties, as the fmall-topped, the 
deep red, the pale red or falmon, and the long-top- 
ped ftriped Radifh ; ail which are varieties arifing 
from culture. The fmall-topped fort is rnoft com- 
monly preferred by the gardeners near London, be- 
caufe they require much lefs room than thofe with 
large tops, and may be left much clofer together; 
and, as the forward Radifhes are what produce the 
greateft profit to the gardener, thefe being com- 
monly fown upon borders near hedges, walls, or 
pales, if they are of. the large-topped fort, will be 
apt to grow moftly to a top, and not fwell fo much 
in the root as the other, efpecially if they are left 
pretty clofe. 
The feafons for fowing this feed are various, accord- 
ing to the time when they are defigned for ufe ; but 
the earlieft feafon is commonly the end of October, 
or beginning of November, that the gardeners near 
London fow them to fupply the markets •, and thefe, 
if they do not mifcarry, will be fit for ufe in the 
beginning of March following, which is full as foon 
as moft people care to eat them. Thefe are com- 
monly fown on warm borders near walls, pales, or 
hedges, where they may be defended from the cold 
winds ; biit there are forne who fow Radiih-feeds 
among other crops the middle of September, and, if 
theie are not deftroyed by froft, they will be fit for 
ufe early in February ; but thefe muff be eaten while 
they are young, for they foon grow fticky and ftrong. 
The fecond fowing is commonly about Chriftmas, 
provided the feafon be mild, ancl the ground in a fit 
condition to work ; thefe are alfo fowed near flicker, 
but not fo near pales and hedges as the firft fowing. 
If thefe are not deftroyed by froft, they will be fit 
for ufe the beginning of April ; but in order to have 
a fuccefiion of thefe roots for the table through the 
feafon, you fhould repeat fowing of their feeds once a 
fortnight, from the middle of January till the beginning 
of April, always obferving to fow the latter crops up- 
on a moift foil and in an open fituation, otherwise 
they will run up and grow ftieky before they are fit 
for ufe. 
Many of the gardeners near London fow Carrot-feed 
with their early R.adifhes, fo that when their Radilhes 
are killed, which fometimes happens, the Carrots will 
remain ; for the feeds of Carrots commonly lie in the 
ground five or fix weeks before they come up, and 
the Radifhes feldom lie above a fortnight under 
ground at that feafon, fo that thefe are often up and 
killed, when the Carrot-feed remains fafe in the 
ground ; but, when both crops fucceed, the Radifhes 
muft be drawn off very young, otherwife the Carrots 
will be drawn up fo weak, as not to be able to fup- 
port tnemfelves when the Radifhes are gone. 
It is alfo a conftant praftice with thefe gardeners to 
mix Spinach-feed with their latter crops of Radifhes, 
fo that when the Radifhes are drawn off, and the 
ground cleaned between the Spinach, it will grow 
prodigioufly, and in a fortnight’s time will as com- 
pletely cover the ground, as though there had been, 
no other crop. And this Spinach, if it be of the 
broad-leaved kind, will be larger and fairer than it 
commonly is when fown by itfelf ; becaufe where peo- 
ple have no other crop mixed with it, they commonly 
low it too thick, whereby it is drawn up weak, but 
here the roots ftand pretty far apart, lb that after the 
Radifhes are gone, they have full room to fpread ^ 
and if the foil be good, it is a prodigious fize this 
Spinach will grow to before it runs up for feed ; but 
this hufbandry is chiefly praftifed by fuch gardeners 
as pay very dear for their land, and are obliged to 
have as many crops in a year as poftible, otherwife 
they could not afford to pay fuch large rents. 
When the Radifnes are come up, and have got five 
or fix leaves, they muft be pulled up where they are 
too clofe, otherwife they will draw up to a top, but the 
roots will not increafe their bulk. In doing of this, 
fome only draw them out by hand, which is a tedious 
method; but the belt way is to hoe them with a fmall 
hoe, which will ftir the ground, and deftroy the 
young weeds, and alfo promote the growth of the Ra- 
dilhes and Spinach. The diftance which thefe fhould 
be left, if for drawing up fmall, may be three inches, 
but if they are to ftand until they are pretty large, fix 
inches are full near enough, and a fmall fpot of ground 
will afford as many Radifhes at each fowing, as can 
be fpent in a family while they are good. 
If you intend to fave feeds of your Radifhes, you 
fhould, at the beginning of May, prepare a fpot of 
ground in proportion to the quantity of feeds in tended 
(but you fhould always make allowance for bad fea- 
fons, becaufe it often happens, in a very dry feafon, 
that there will not he a fourth part of the quantity of 
feeds upon the fame proportion of ground as there 
will be in a moift feafon, though in a dry year the 
feeds will ripen belt.) This ground fhould be well 
dug and levelled ; then you fhould draw up fome 
of the ftraiteft and beft coloured Radifhes (throwing 
away all fuch as are {hort, and that branch out in their 
roots ;) the Radifhes fhould be planted in rows three 
feet diftance, and two feet afunder in the rows, ob- 
ferving, if the feafon be dry, to water them until they 
have taken root ; after which they will require no far- 
ther care> but only to hoe down the weeds between 
them 
