Westport (MA)

Variety is very good eaten raw. Raw roots are moderately spicy and sweet, very juicy, and have a firm, crisp texture. Cooked roots are soft and creamy with an earthy potato-like flavor that is slightly bitter. Large white roots have red or green coloring around the top and range in shape from elliptic to triangular. Smooth, glossy skin. Several roots are rather tall and curved at the top. Roots 4.3-8.3" long, 1.75-4.25" wide, and weigh 4-35oz. Roots grow largely above the soil line. Long, wide leaves are dark green with a light green to very light purple midvein. Plants 8.3-15" tall and 26-45" in diameter. a.k.a. the Macomber Turnip. Developed by brothers Adin and Elihu Macomber from seed they brought home to Westport, MA from the 1876 Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition. It later became a popular cash crop grown by many farmers in and around Westport and Dartmouth for local markets. This accession was previously distributed by SSE incorrectly as a turnip, but botanically, it is a rutabaga. SSE Accession # 127630