CARROTS AND PARSNIPS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXI, Issue 21882, 18 August 1934, Page 8 (Supplement)

CARROTS AND PARSNIPS

LENGTH OF THE SEASON Parsnips and carrots arc useful vegetables to grow. Thoir season extends over many months of the year, and in the case of the carrots lasts practically the whole year round. With the latter the cultivator can have young roots for pulling by the time the stored ones are exhausted. Jn the case of the parsnip there is a short period when loots are not available, but as it occurs in summer, when there is a great variety of vegetables, it is of no consequence.

To do really well parsnips must have a long season of growth, the seeds being sown fully two months before it is necessary to sow main-crop carrots. The best soil is a light or sandy loam. Very few growers are able to choose their soil, so must do their best by working the particular medium they have very well. A cold, retentive clay is about the worst, as, besides giving rise to trouble from canker, it entails laborious work in obtaining the necessary depth of friable soil. If readers possess any unmanured soil now they will bo wise if they do not apply any fresh manure. Do without it and assist the growth later in the season with approved fertilisers. Very fresh manure leads to canker, and also causes forking of* the roots. The best time to apply manure for this crop is in tho previous autumn, and even then tho manure must be well rotted. If deep digging or trenching was not done then do not hesitate to tackle the soil now, breaking tho lumps up well, especially low down.

Late in August or early in September, when the soil is in a good crumbly condition, is a suitable time to sow parsnip seeds. The seeds are so light that it is wise to choose a quiet day for the sowing. There are always a number of light seeds which do not germinate. Allowance should be made for this fact or the rows will be thin. The plants should be thinned to nine inches apart, and rows for easy working are spaced at 38 inches. Promote early growth and at the same time keep down weeds. Later on the largo leaves will smother all small weeds. Nitrate of soda at the rate of one ounce a yard run of row, applied when the soil is moist and hoed in, will be beneficial; one application will be enough. With but few exceptions tho finest roots can only bo grown in a special compost, placed in neatly-ma/le holes in the ground. .An iron bar or tapering stake is used to make the holes. These must be made with smooth sides and then filled up with the sifted compost. For parsnips mix a good handful of bonedust with every bushel of compost, using the same quantity, and twice as much wood-ashes for carrots. Tho top four inches in the hole should bo plain soil. The seeds are sown in this and are duly covered, being eventually thinned to one plant. Make the holes 18 inches apart each way for parsnips and 12 inches for carrots.

MIXING MANURES

ADVICE FOR AMATEURS Experience, as well as a fair amount of chemical knowledge, is required to make the best use of manures, and to mix thorn so that they may suit different crops. Some manures do not make a good mixture with others. The mixture may result in a chemical action which destroys much of their power. Also, the mixture must not be moist or lumpy, while it is sometimes necessary to allow it to stand for a while before putting in bags. For this reason, manufacturers have placed on the market s|x>cial manures for special crops, compounded under expert control. They contain the necessary ele-

merits of plant fond in the correct proportions for some defined crop. To indicate exactly what buyers are getting, the actual percentages of nitrogen, soluble phosphate, insoluble phosphates, potash, etc.. is stated, and with u little chemical knowledge, they can compare percentages with prices. These special manures are of the greatest value to the small user, as the mixing of tbe ingredients lias always been a pitfall for the unwary, but for those who wish to experiment for themselves, the accompanying chart shows which manures may be mixed together and which may not.

EARLY MARROWS During summer when marrows are plentiful they are of little monetary value, but during November and December y Ming marrows are greatly appreciated. Thoy can b» produced in greenhouses at I'ttlo cost. Groat heat is not required. The plants themselves may be raised from seeds sown in small pots in August. While the plants are filling those pots with roots, mounds of prepared compost are placed in position on tbe floor of tbe bouse in the same manner as for cucumbers. The compost is best made of a mixture of fibrous loam, decayed manure and coarse sand. When the pots are full of roots the plants may bo transferred to the mounds, allowing at least three feet between each. Wires must be stretched beneath tho rafters of the house, and a stick must be placed as a guide for the plant up to the first wire. Tho leading shoot is carried up to the apex of the roof, and tbe laterals are trained out horizontally, until the second leaf beyond the embryo fruit is formed, when the point may bo pinched out. When the first flowers oocn it will be necessary to fertilise them.