2896. Turnip farmer © Bruce Goodman 6 November 2023

Richard was a turnip farmer. All six of his kids hated turnips. Young Laurie called it “cattle fodder”. He had just learnt the word “fodder” so it was coming in handy. They simply had turnips too often at meals. “Why can’t you grow something else instead, Dad?” The following year Richard grew leeks. Leeks provided an even better income than turnips. Mind you, they weren’t overly rich, but had enough to live on. But my goodness! Did the six kids get sick of leeks quicker than they got sick of turnips. Of course having only a few acres it was good to “rotate the crops” so the following year Richard grew watermelons. One night some people came in with a truck and stole the lot. “Next year it's back to turnips,” said Richard. Contact Author Back to Index Next Story Previous Story