Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1879-07-09
The Management of Root CrOps.

Having determined from the mos, salts.
factory evidence that Il good crop Of roots
is more profitable than any other because
there is more feeding capablitv in it Than
in corn. which is our next crop in he order
of productiveness, it is the most important
business to see that the culture given to il
is of the right kind. To sow beets, man
gels or turnips upon rough, cloddy ground
is to throw away an opportunity. The
writer's experience the present season has
been most instructive in this regard. A
piece of corn stubble was prepared by
blowing under dressing of manure
which was, unfortunately, not thoroughly
rotted and fine. The planting done with
IL Monitor hand seed-dril WAS Il most
troublesome piece of work, and more
trouble is promised when wedding and
cultvating comes to be done A piece of
rye stubbe, dressed with short manure
and thoroughly well narrowed and rolled
before the planting, made the best and
easiest of work. The latter piece will
IL ubtless. be worked at cost of half the
labor that will be needed on the first piece
With smooth. mellow ground the seed
drill mentioned will do very good work
planting one acre in three hours, and sow
ing six pounds of seed per acre with the
use of the No. roller, which drops three
or four seeds together about six inches
apart. The seed is sown and covered, and
the soil rolled, at one operation.
) After sowing. the cultivation of root
lcrop consists of keeping the soil mellow
and free from weeds, and thinning out the
plants. This may be done at first with IL
hand cultivator. provided with two wheels
! to run astride of the row. and having hoes
or scrapers which work both sides at
once. This may he used while the plants
are small, and afterward the larger one
horse cultivator may be run through the
rows. To encourage rapid growth. the
working of the rows should be frequent.
and moderate application of Peruvian
guano or prepared beet fertilizer worked
in with the cultivator will be useful The
thinning or singing of the plants can be
done with the hand cuItivator-the best
for this purpose which the writer has used
is the Planet hand cultivator, which has
two wheels and scraper on each side of
the row-the supernumerary plants can
he cut out very rapidly by side motion
of the cutters, as the rows are cleaned t.
within an inch of the young plants. After
the bulbs have begun 10 form and the
broad leaves begin TO cover the rows, the
work of cultivation is nearly at an end.
One more loosening of the soil, and the
crop may be laid away. For mangels, Il
dressing of three hundred TO five hundred
pounds of salt per acre will be found ben
eficidl and profitable.
Rulabngas and turnips, which may be
sown, the first in June OF July, and the
latter in August or September. are of
quick growth and are greatly benefited by
frequent cultivation and the use of phos-
phatic fertilizers. These small seeds can
be sown with the drill previously men
toned, or any other of the standard gar
den seed sewers, and can be- cultivated
and thinned out with any of the two
wheeled hand cultivators. This use of
The hand cultivators for singing the plants
we find to be great Improvement on the
usual method with the hoe, being done
much more rapidly and effectively.-Neso
York Times.