Remember how the turnip triggered the Industrial Revolution and lifted millions out of poverty? In England, in the early 1700s, fields were increasingly “plow sick” — they had exhausted their fertility. Farmers had to let them lie fallow to restore nutrients to the soil. But then, farmers started incorporating turnips into their crop rotations and feeding them to livestock during the winter. This increased the manure they shoveled onto fields, which restored fertility. Farm productivity
What the humble turnip can teach us about economic growth
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