Root Vegetable Crops

Root vegetables are characterized by prominent, fleshy underground struc­ ture, which, depending upon the crop may be a root, tuberous root, or a hypocotyl with taproot forming below it. Major root vegetables come from Umbclliferae (carrot), Brassicaccae (radish, turnip), and Chenopodiaceae (beet) families. These crops have variable food value (Table 1) and long stor­ age life, which contributed to their nutritional importance. These develop suc- 43 1.6 0.1 9.