152 
Some Minor Farm Crops. 
summer chrysanthemums. The last mentioned are a favourite 
food for birds, and they are attacked while the seed is in a 
green state, almost before the flowers have disappeared. -On 
one farm of 1,100 acres, the farmer’s Crop Book contained 328 
plots, and many of these were flowers. On a small holding 
consisting of one field 17 acres in extent, there were no less 
than 20 plots, of which 7 were flower seeds. 
The seed beds for growing plants are usually prepared in 
the spring and early summer. They generally consist of ridges, 
either on the stetches, or on the level ploughing. Mangold seed is 
sown in August, and the plants are transplanted into the fields 
in April. They are usually planted on ridges, of w r hich there 
may be either three or four to the stetch according to the variety 
grown. The seed for turnip and swede plants is sown on seed 
beds in June and July, according to variety. The yellow turnip 
is the first to be sown. The transplanting of sw T ede and turnip 
plants goes on from October to April, even through the month 
of January, when the weather is open. Cabbage seed is sown 
for plants in March and April, and the transplanting begins in 
July, going on through August and September. Parsnip seed 
is also sown in April, and the plants are moved to the fields in 
the autumn. This is the case too, with celery. Parsley takes 
too long to “ start ” when transplanted, so it is usually sown in 
the spring under a crop of broad beans, and after the beans are 
removed, stands through the winter till the seed harvest of the 
following summer. Some flower seeds are also sown for plants 
in the spring, and the plants are removed to the fields in the 
summer and autumn. Wallflowers are sown on the seed beds 
in April and transplanted frorn July omvards. But most of the 
flower seeds are sown on the ridges in the autumn, where they 
remain till the harvest. Sweet peas, godetias, nasturtiums, 
candytuft, pansies and larkspurs are grown in this way. The 
seeds are sometimes drilled, but are more usually sown by hand. 
In the latter case a “marker” is used, which just covers the 
stetch, having as many shares as there are ridges, or as the 
number of rows required. It is so arranged that the horse 
walks in the furrow, and thus treading is avoided. 
Obviously, such an industry as this necessitates a large 
amount of manual labour. Plants of mangolds, swedes, turnips, 
cabbages, broccoli, celery, parsnips, wallflowers, sweet-williams, 
&c., must be singly “ dibbed ” in the rows or drills. On large 
farms this is all done by gangs of men working by the “ piece.” 
Four or six men usually work together, and are attended by 
two or three boys. The farmer is responsible for “ drawing ” 
the plants and taking them, to the fields. He also provides the 
boys who do the “dropping” for the men. The whole of the 
harvesting is also donejby/hand. Mangold, turnip, and similar 
