ch used for garnishing; and, for all these purposes,
the deeper colored they are, the more they are appreciated. Some,
however, it ought to be noticed, prefer them of a bright-red color; but
all must be of fine quality in fibre, solid, and of uniform color. The
roots are also eaten cut into thin slices, and baked in an oven. Dried,
roasted, and ground, they are sometimes mixed with coffee, and are also
much employed as a pickle. Mixed with dough, they make a wholesome
bread; but, for this purpose, the white or yellow rooted sorts are
preferred. The roots of all the varieties are better baked than
boiled."--_M'Int._

The young plants make an excellent substitute for spinach; and the
leaves of some of the kinds, boiled when nearly full grown, and served
as greens, are tender and well-flavored.

Some of the larger varieties are remarkably productive, and are
extensively cultivated for agricultural purposes. From a single acre of
land in good condition, thirty or forty tons are frequently harvested;
and exceptional crops are recorded of fifty, and even sixty tons. In
France, the White Sugar-beet is largely employed for the manufacture of
sugar,--the amount produced during one year being estimated to exceed
that annually made from the sugar-cane in the State of Louisiana.

For sheep, dairy-stock, and the fattening of cattle, experience has
proved the beet to be at once healthful, nutritious, and economical.

_Varieties._--The varieties are quite numerous, and vary to a
considerable extent in size, form, color, and quality. They are obtained
by crossing, or by the intermixture of one kind with another. This often
occurs naturally when two or more varieties are allowed to run to seed
in close proximity, but is sometimes performed artificially by
transferring the pollen from the flower of a particular variety to the
stigma of the flower of another.

The kinds now in cultivation are as follows; viz.:--

BARK-SKINNED. _Vil._

Oak Bark-skinned.

[Illustration: Bark-skinned Beet.]

Root produced entirely within the earth, broadest near the crown, and
thence tapering regularly to a point; average specimens measuring four
inches in their greatest diameter, and about one foot in depth. Skin
dark brown, thick, hard, and wrinkled, or striated, sometimes
reticulated or netted, much resembling the bark of some descriptions of
trees; whence the name. Flesh very deep purplish-red, circled, and rayed
with paler red, fine-grained