TURNIPS AND RUTA BAGAS.
Turnips and ruta bagas are closely related. The latter are turnips in fact, and are frequently called Swedes. The common method on many farms is to sow turnips broadcast, but it is a far better practice to sow both these and the ruta bagas in drills, so that they can be kept clear of weeds and worked by horse-power. Not only are these advantages secured, but the row system makes it possible to take out the superfluous plants, and secure roots of uniform size and shape. Turnips and ruta bagas have high economic value as foods, both for humanity and for live stock.
Turnips.—Turnips are grown for market purposes both in spring and in fall. In the spring the seed should be sown early, in mellow soil. For the fall crop the seed may be sown either in July or August. The rows in garden or field may be as close as can be conveniently worked.
Turnip.—For earliest, we recommend Purple Top and White Milan. For fall crop, Mammoth Purple Top Globe and Golden Ball. For descriptions, see "Johnson & Stokes' Garden and Farm Manual."
Budlong or Breadstone Turnip.
Ruta Bagas or Swedes.—The seed of ruta baga or Swedish turnip should be sown (in the latitude of Philadelphia) in July, a little earlier than the seed of the common turnip. The ground should be well enriched with rotted manure, the rows 2½ to 3 feet apart, the seed covered to the depth of half an inch, and the plants afterward thinned out so as to stand 6 or 8 inches apart in the row. The crop is almost always large and satisfactory.
Ruta Baga.—We recommend Myer's Purple Top Beauty and Budlong. For descriptions, see our "Garden and Farm Manual."
Myer's Purple Top Beauty Ruta Baga.
Storage.—Turnips of all kinds sell well in the winter markets, to say nothing of their high value as stock foods. They are easily preserved in root cellars, covered with sand, or in pits in dry soil, covered with straw and earth to prevent freezing.
Distribution of Water through Home-made Hose Pipe. An Illustration from our New Book—"Irrigation by Cheap Modern Methods." No Gardener should miss Reading this Work. See page 125.