SALSAFY AND SCORZONERA.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20786, 3 August 1929, Page 7

SALSAFY AND SCORZONERA.

TWO VEGETABLES WORTH GROWING. Salsafy. Salsafy is grown for its root, which is long, tapering, and fleshy. Served in a similar manner to parsnips, this vegetable is very delicious. It should °be scraped, and cut into pieces, then soaked in vinegar, boiled in salted water, and. served with melted butter. Not only is the root useful, but the stalks may be dressed and eaten Hkj asparagus. If they are cut when at a length of four or five inches they are very good. Culture. A first crop may be put in during September, but the main crop is best sown

in October, or early November, while for a later crop sow at the end of that month. Care, should be taken that, at sowing time, no fresh manure is added to the soil. The ground should have been trenched to a depth of two feet, fertiliser being added then. This depth is necessary so that there is plenty of room for the long roots to go down. The vegetable thrives best in a free, rich soil, and an open situation is essential. The crop is most satisfactorily managed, as far as keeping the soil clean is concerned, and also for thinning, if put in drills, which need not be more than an inch deep, and a foot apart ought to be left between the rows. As soon as the plants are big enough for thinning—that is, when they are about three inches high—the work should be attended to, preferably on a dull, sunless day; eight inches should be left between the plants. By late autumn there should be plenty of roots ready for drawing, and, should there be an appearance of frost, a part of the crop should be taken up and stored in sand, so as to supply the tfible in winter, or while the frost lasts. The remaining roots may be left in the ground, but in spring they must be lifted before they begin to get tough and woody. Scorzonera.

Scorzonera is also cultivated for its long,, carrot-shaped root This vegetable is black on the outside, but has nice white flesh. It is cooked in the same way as salsafy. If the seeds are sown too early, this vegetable is apt to run to seed. Jn the north the end of November is the time to sow, while in southern districts the sowings shchild be made during the second or third week in October. A light, deep, rich soil is best, also an open situation. Drills should be made about half an inch deep and 12 inches apart. The general culture is similar to that recommended for salsafy, thinning taking place when the seedlings are three to four inches high. ' .Gave them eight inches asunder in the rows.

Scorzonera roots are ready for use rather earlier than salsafy, soinc roofs being ready, or of a size suitable for drawing in March, though they are not in perfection till the month of May, at which time storage of a portion of the crop should be made. Roots left in the ground over winter ought to be lifted before the month of October, as some of the plants begin to flower thus early, and when this happens they are, of course, spoiled for use.