Part 1

Transcriber’s Note:

Words and phrases in italics are surrounded by _underscores_; those in bold are surrounded by =equal signs=. Misspelled words were corrected. One full-page advertisement was moved from the front to the end of the book.

CARROTS,

Mangold Wurtzels

AND

SUGAR BEETS.

HOW TO RAISE THEM, HOW TO KEEP THEM AND HOW TO FEED THEM.

BY JAMES J. H. GREGORY, AUTHOR OF “ONION RAISING,” “CABBAGE RAISING,” ETC.

LINOTYPED AND PRINTED BY J. J. ARAKELYAN, 295 CONGRESS STREET, BOSTON.

Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1900, by JAMES J. H. GREGORY. At the Clerk’s Office of the District Court of Massachusetts.

CONTENTS.

The Argument for the Raising of roots 3 THE CARROT 5 The Location and Soil 5 The Manure and its Application 7 Preparing the Bed 12 When to Plant 13 The Seed and the Planting of it 15 Quantity to the Acre 16 Varieties, and What Kinds to Grow 17 Early Very Short Scarlet 19 Early Short Scarlet Horn 19 Short Horn 19 Danvers Carrot 21 Guerande Carrot 21 Long Orange, or Long Surry 21 Large White Belgian 22 The Cultivation, and the Implements needed 23 Gathering and Storing the Crop 26 Raising Carrots with Onions 29 Marketing and Feeding 30 THE MANGOLD WURTZELS 32 Varieties 34 The Long Varieties 35 The Round Varieties 35 The Ovoid Varieties 35 What Kinds to Grow 35 The Soil and its Preparation 38 The Manure and its Application 39 Salt as an Auxiliary Manure 48 Planting the Seed and Tending the Crop 49 Gathering and Storing the Crop 52 Feeding the Crop 56 The Cost of the Crop 61

CARROTS.

In nutritious value roots compare with hay in about the average proportion of one to three. If now we consider that thirty-four tons of Swedes nearly forty tons of Carrots and seventy-four tons of Mangold roots have been raised in Massachusetts, to the acre, and that to each of these crops should be added at least 15 per cent. for the fodder value of the yield of leaves, which were not included in these estimates, we have a demonstration of how immensely more is the nourishment that can be obtained from an acre of roots than from an acre in hay. Such an immense increase in the nourishing products of the farm, if fed on the premises as it should be, unless the farmer is so located that he can buy manure cheaper than he can make it, means a great increase in the manure products, and consequently a great increase in the crops,--so that it has been wisely said, root culture lies at the basis of good husbandry.

Carrots and Mangolds are subject to but few diseases. In discussing the nutritious value, chemists differ somewhat, according as they measure this by the nitrogen they contain, their per cent. of dry matter or sugar, but they agree in ranking them much superior to the early varieties of turnip and somewhat superior to the Ruta Baga or Swede class, particularly when fed to full grown cattle. Prof. Johnson ranks Carrots with Cabbage when fed to oxen, for nourishment. Experiments appear to have proved that when equal measures of each are fed, Mangolds will give a greater increase of milk than potatoes, by about a third. For some reason not fully understood (perhaps the depth they penetrate the soil has something to do with it) Onions will do better after Carrots than after any other crop, the yield being larger, the bulb handsomer, while the crop will bottom down earlier and better. Unlike Turnips or Swedes, with high manuring the crop can be profitably grown for years on the same piece of land. Swine prefer Mangolds to any root except the parsnip, and both in this country and in England store hogs, weighing from 125 lbs. and upwards have been carried through the winter in fine condition, when fed wholly on raw Sugar Beets or Mangolds. Chemists rank Carrots, when compared with oats, with reference to their fat and flesh forming qualities, as 1 to 5.

Not only have roots a value in themselves as food, but they have a special office, taking to a large degree the place of grass and preventing the constipation that dry feed sometimes causes. While practice proves that they should not be relied upon to entirely supersede hay or grain, still they increase the value of either of these to a large degree; and for slow working stock they may be fed with profit in place of from a third to half the grain usually given. Carrots add not only to the richness of the color, but also to the quality of the milk, while the flavor of the butter made from such milk is improved. Carrots fed in moderate quantities to horses give additional gloss to their hairy coats, and have not only a medicinal value when given to such as have been over-grained, but aid them in digesting grain, as may be seen in the dung of horses fed on oats with Carrots, and that of those fed on oats without Carrots. When cooked they are sometimes fed to poultry, and either cooked or raw to swine. In the family economy they have their place, particularly when young and fresh, while in Europe they enter largely into the composition of the well-known vegetable soups of the French.

THE CARROT.

“The Carrot,” (_Daucus Carota_) says Burr in his “Field and Garden Vegetables of America,” a book worthy a place in every farmer’s library,--“in its cultivated state is a half-hardy biennial. It is indigenous to some parts of Great Britain, generally growing in chalky or sandy soil, and to some extent has become naturalized in this country; being found in gravelly pastures and mowing fields, and occasionally by roadsides, in loose places, where the surface has been disturbed or removed. In its native state the root is small, slender and fibrous or woody, of no value, and even of questionable properties as an article of food.”

The average result of several analyses of the Carrot as given by Dr. Voelcker, is as follows:--

Water, 87.0 Albuminous Compounds, .7 Fat, .2 Pectine, 1.2 Cellular Fiber, 3.5 Sugar, 6.5 Ash, .9

THE LOCATION AND SOIL.

It is important in selecting a location for the Carrot bed that the land should be nearly level, as otherwise the seed will be liable to wash out after heavy showers, and the plants while young be either washed out or covered with soil and killed. The land should be, as far as possible, clear of all stones. The presence of large rocks “in place,” as the geologists say, would interfere with the continuity of the rows, while the loose stones are not only always in the way while raking and planting the bed, but are also in the way of the slide or wheel hoes which are apt to knock them against the young plants to their injury. The strongest objections to a stony soil, for Carrots, are that it interferes with the growth of the roots and greatly increases the labor of digging them. It is important that the piece of ground selected for a crop that will require so much manure and labor should have every advantage possible in its favor; it should not only be level and comparatively free from stones, but if possible should have been previously under high cultivation, that it may come to Carrots when in high condition.

The best soil, particularly for the Long Orange variety, is a loam mellow to the depth of two feet or more. On such soil the Carrot will perfect itself, growing straight and altogether beautiful to look upon, as they stretch from side to side of the bushel boxes. On some market gardens near critical markets, farmers find it for their interest to ascertain by actual experiment on what part of their grounds the root will grow longest and straightest, and when such plot is found make it a permanent bed. If the soil does not naturally grow a long Carrot and they are desired, the end may be attained by trenching deep and adding sand. The difference in the shape of the Long Orange, when grown on a deep mellow loam, and on a heavy soil with a compact sub-soil, is so remarkable that it would be almost impossible to make an inexperienced person believe each lot was from the same seed,--those grown on the heavy soil, resting on a compact sub-soil, oftentimes so closely resembling the Intermediate varieties as not to be distinguished from them. Though the course is not on the whole to be advised, yet Carrots can be raised on freshly turned sod. Such land will be very free from weeds, and by making good use of the wheel harrow, and applying manure in a very fine state, should the season be a moist one, fair crops may be raised. Reclaimed meadows in a good state of cultivation, which are well-drained to the depth of thirty inches, will oftentimes grow crops, large in bulk, but the individual roots are oftentimes inclined to “sprangle,” and unless such meadows have been well drained, and liberally covered with sand or gravelly loam, they are apt to be spongy and inferior. When grown on land inclining to clay, they are apt to be small and woody in structure; still, such land, if made friable by good underdraining and the application of sand, may be made fair Carrot ground.

THE MANURE AND ITS APPLICATION.

All root crops delight in most liberal manuring and the highest of cultivation. Carrots are no exception to this rule. With every crop, other conditions being equal, _it is the last half of the manure gives the profits_; and the more costly the cultivation required the more important it is that this golden fact be borne in mind. Though chemical analysis shows difference in the composition of all roots, and that there is therefore an office for special manures, yet their general composition is so nearly alike, and animal manures, most of which contain in greater or less proportion, all the elements required, are so difficult to handle in just the proportions that would be required from the chemical standpoint, particularly when we consider that soils on which root crops are grown are usually rich in manures, varying in their chemical constituents, left over from former crops;--for this reason I treat of manure by the cord and with reference to its comparative strength, bulk for bulk, rather than of its chemical elements.

Eight cords of good stable manure; nine cords of a compost made of one part night soil to two parts muck or loam; eight cords of muscle mud; six or eight cords of rotten kelp--either of these applied to an acre of land in good condition by previous high cultivation would be sufficient for a good crop of Carrots. Other manures might be mentioned, but these will serve as a pretty good measure of value for any kind accessible to farmers in general. To produce a very large crop, such as one would like to be able to point to when premium crops are called for, add from one-quarter to one-half to the above quantities. The condition of the manure is a matter of importance; the stable manure should be good; not half bedding, not burnt, neither too coarse nor too new; the night soil should have been well mixed with the soil in the compost heap, and have been pitched over twice with sufficient intervals between to allow it to develop some heat. The muscle mud should be rich in dead muscles. In all farming, it is important that the manures applied should be in a fine condition mechanically, and particularly is this true of root crops. For the roots of all plants can take up only such parts of the manures as are dissolved in water, and the firmer the manure is the more readily can water penetrate it.

_A man who is unfortunately short of manures can materially increase the capacity of what he has by working it over until it is very fine._

When short of a supply of animal manure, where the soil is already in good condition, a good fertilizer can be used with success. Apply fifteen hundred pounds to the acre. The famous fertilizer formulas of Prof. Stockbridge have generally done so well I should be willing to try them on an acre of Carrots, were I short of other manures.

There is another matter concerning our manures which requires attention; if they are too fresh or crude they will be apt, if applied to our long growing varieties, to drive the growth too much into the top of the Carrot, to the loss of the root, giving us tops to our knees with roots about the size of a hoe handle. It is important therefore, when used liberally, that they should be somewhat decomposed--that the mixtures should be _composts_, as far as the time will allow, and not mere mixtures. To the shorter varieties the crude manure may be applied with a degree of safety. Here let me note a fact that I think is of general application in farming, viz.:--that a style of manuring that will drive tall growing varieties of vegetables nearly all to tops or vine, with dwarf varieties of the same kind will work admirably. The Pea is a very good illustration; to get a good crop of a dwarf variety, manure liberally, but the same quantity applied to the taller sorts would drive them excessively into vine at the expense of the crop.

Don’t make your compost heap on the ground where the crop is to grow, for the result will be no crop where the heap stands. For the same reason it is bad policy to cart out any strong manure to stand on the land in heaps, no matter how small, over winter. There will be nothing lost by spreading the manure over the surface before the ground is frozen. In getting it into the soil, _keep it as near the surface as possible_ without its interfering with the planting of the seed, bearing in mind the nitrogen, that element in manures, about the loss of which by evaporation there is much uncalled for anxiety, tends to work down into the soil. If the manure is coarse it may be applied to the surface in the Fall and be deeply ploughed in, and in the Spring again brought to the surface by ploughing equally deep, having meanwhile received the benefits of frost and moisture.

In applying fertilizers keep them near the surface, scattering them broadcast and raking or harrowing in. It is better not to apply these all at once. Apply about two-thirds at the time of sowing, the remainder when the crop is about one-third grown--following it with the slide hoe, which will tend to work it in just under the surface. In applying all fertilizers in the Spring time, it is well to do so early in the day, as winds are apt to rise as the day advances, which seriously interfere with the economical application and even distribution. Fertilizers tend to hasten the maturity of the crops to which they are applied. There is one condition that has a very important bearing on the cost of Carrots and all roots, viz.:--that both the ground and manure should be as free from all weed seed as possible. For this reason ground recently from the sod, the third year, provided it has been kept under a high state of cultivation, and such manures which from their very nature must be comparatively free from the seed of weeds, such as fish composts, night soil, or barn manure a year old, are to be preferred.

Dr. Voelcker gives the result of 10 analyses of the ashes of the root and 2 of the ashes of the leaves of the Carrot, and from these deduces the following as the number of pounds of mineral matter taken from an acre of land, by 10 tons of roots and 4 tons of tops.

Potash, Soda, Lime, Phosphoric Acid, 116 lbs. 86 lbs. 101 lbs. 31 lbs.

Sulphuric Acid, Chlorine, 34 lbs. 31 lbs.

To those who desire to experiment with mineral manures this table will be interesting as showing the kinds and proportion of each needed. The potash is found in unleached ashes, from two to five pounds to the bushel; or in the German Potash salts; the soda and chlorine in common salt, (chloride of sodium); lime in the common lime of the mason, the Phosphoric acid in the phosphates offered in the markets, and the Sulphuric acid in that directly or in common finely ground plaster known by chemists as Sulphate of Lime.

I shall have occasion to present some very valuable suggestions of the learned Professor, under the head of “The Manure” in my article on Mangolds, to which they more especially apply.

The greatest single item in the cost of any crop is the manure, but this is an exceedingly varying element. Farmers near cities, and particularly if they also reside near the sea-coast, as an off-set for the greater cost of farming-land and expenses of living, have the advantages of a city market and special facilities for collecting manures, at a cost to them, much below the standard value of stable manure. Night soil to almost an unlimited extent can be obtained for the cost of collecting it, while the waste material of the fisheries, Kelp, Rock Weed, Muscle Mud, Glue Waste, Sugar House Waste, and the products of the distilleries, these and other rich fertilizers can be procured at so low a figure, in proportion to their value, that root crops can be raised considerably cheaper than in farming districts not so favored. Many a man can be found in these favored districts who thinks he is making a good business at farming, yet could he but sell the manure he gathers so cheaply, at its market value, barn manure being the standard, he would make money by doing so and folding his arms the rest of the year. The fact is he is really losing money at farming; but through his crops he is selling what cost him but a trifle--at a price, indeed, below its real value, but still so far in advance of cost as to leave a profit. Such a man does wisely in the course he pursues though he makes a mistake in the debtor and creditor side of the account, for it is most decidedly wiser to be at work than idle, though the result makes no difference in the dollars in a man’s pocket.

PREPARING THE BED.

The great object here should be to get the soil thoroughly fine that the small, thread-like fibers, and the roots themselves, may waste the least possible vital power in permeating the earth in search of food, or in pushing downwards. The vitality wasted in this way is just so much taken from growth, and may make the sole difference between a good crop and a poor one. If it is necessary that the first ploughing should be a very deep one, better apply the manure (as previously stated, the finer mechanical condition this is in the better) afterwards. Should the manure be to any degree coarse after spreading, run the brush or wheel harrow over it, one or both. This will also break up the clods and fine up the soil and incorporate the manure with it. If still at all lumpy, follow with a plank drag. Next plow shallow a few furrows, and have men, with wooden-toothed hand rakes, rake at right angles, pulling all coarse stones and lumps of earth and manure into the last furrow made. In brief, proceed to make as fine a seed bed as for onions.

If any one, depending on the apparent fineness of the surface, concludes to dispense with the final raking and let the work of the brush harrow answer, he will be apt to repent it before the season closes; should he try it let him be sure to double the quantity of seed planted in that portion of the land so treated. When the land is loamy and free from stones an implement known as the “Meeker Harrow,” will be found to be a great time-saver in preparing the seed bed; by actual test on my own farm, I find that it will do the work of more than a dozen hands with rakes. If the bed has its first ploughing early in the season, much of the weed seed will germinate before planting time, then an occasional use of the cultivator will destroy many of the pests.

WHEN TO PLANT.

Some of our best farmers advocate planting about the middle of May, others equally successful in root culture claim that the middle of June is the best time. There are arguments for both early and late planting. In New England we usually have the weather sufficiently moist towards the close of May to insure the germination of the seed and protect the plants when they break ground, from “sun-scald.” Those planted as late as the middle of June are more liable to be so affected by the dry weather usual at that period as not to vegetate as well; and should the heat be very great just after they push through the ground, sometimes in a single day nearly the entire crop will disappear by “sun-scald.” But on the other hand, by planting late we about get rid of one weeding, assuming that the ground is stirred by the cultivator occasionally, up to the time of planting. Again, this brings the crop in full vigor in October, the month of all others most favorable for the growth of the root, and the Carrots being dug while the tops are in fair growing condition, keep better than when dug fully ripe. The argument for late planting holds especially good for the Short Horn varieties, as these require a shorter time to mature than the long kinds. If the crop is planted too early, sometimes the roots, having matured, will attempt to push seed shoots; when this is so they will be found woody in their structure, with numberless thread-like roots, while their quality and keeping properties are greatly injured. This crop on rich land is sometimes planted as late as the first week in July, and with great success, should the Fall prove exceptionably mild, yet, as a rule, I would not recommend planting later than the middle of June. If it so happens, from press of work, or the dry weather, the farmer has to plant later than this, then by all means let him confine himself to the earlier varieties.

THE SEED AND THE PLANTING OF IT.