Part 14

For the Hand-hoeing they use Hoes of Four Inches Breadth, very thin, and well steeled: Their Thinness keeps them from wearing to a thick Edge, and prevents the Necessity of often grinding them. Such Hoes are in Use with some Gardeners near _London_. They need not be afraid of drawing these little Hoes across the Rows of young Wheat to take out the few Weeds that come therein at the early Hoeing; for whilst the Wheat-plants are small, it may be an Advantage to cut out some of the weakest, as they do of Turneps; for I perceive there are oftener too many Plants than too few. But the thing that causes the greatest Trouble in cleansing the Rows, is when the Seed is foul (_i. e._ full of Seeds of Weeds): Therefore I cleanse my Seed-wheat by drawing it on a Cloth on a Table, which makes it perfectly clean.

This Hand-hoeing should be performed about the End of _March_, or Beginning of _April_, before the Wheat is spindled (_i. e._ run up to Stalks); and if the Weather be dry enough, you may go lengthways of the Ridges with a very light Roller to break the Clods of the Partitions, whereby the Hoe will work the better.

If there should afterwards more Weeds come up, they must not be suffered to ripen; and then the Soil will be every Year freer from Weeds.

This Hand-hoeing of the Rows should be done at the proper time, though it happen, by late Planting, that the Horse-hoe has not gone before it; for it may be, that the Weather has kept out the Horse-hoe: and the Earth may not be dry deep enough in the Intervals for the Hoe-plough, but deep enough in the Partitions for the Hand-hoe.

And the Expence of this Hand-work on the Rows would be well answered, though there should not be one Weed in them; and so it would be, if a second Hand hoeing were bestowed on the Partitions of every Crop of Wheat not suspected of being too luxuriant.

If after the last Horse-hoeing there should be Occasion for another Hoeing of the Intervals, where the Narrowness of them, and the Leaning of tall Wheat, make it difficult or dangerous to be performed by the Hoe-plough; a slight shallow Hoeing may be performed therein by the Hand-hoe with Ease and Safety, at a very small Expence, which would be more than doubly repaid in the following Crops.

* * * * *

If any one doubts of the Efficacy of thus managing Wheat, it can’t cost much to make proper Trials. But then Care must be taken, that the Trials be proper. I do not advise any one to be at the Expence of my Instruments for that Purpose, but to imitate them in pulverizing, and all other directed Operations by the Spade and common Hoes. His Ridges of Experiment need be no longer than Six Feet. Instead of a Drill, make use of a triangular Piece of Wood, Seven Feet long, and Four or Five Inches thick, with one Edge of which make Channels, and place the Seed regularly even into them by Hand, and cover it with the same Piece of Wood; but if the Earth be so wet, as to cling to the Piece, then make use of it only as a Ruler, whereby to make the Channels strait with a Stick.

Let some of the Ridges have double Rows, others treble; and let some have treble Rows half-way, and leave out the middle Row in the other Half, to shew whether the double Row or the treble Row produce a better Crop.

Then for the First time of Hoeing, the Spade must work with its Back towards the Row. The Second time, in turning the Earth to the Row, the Spade’s Face must be towards it. These Two, and several other Hoeings should be deep; but when the Roots are large (and the Hoeing is near the Plants), the Spade must go shallow; and neither the Face nor the Back of it must be towards the Row, except when the Earth is turned towards it; and then the Face must be always towards it; but for the rest of the last Hoeings, the Spade should work with its Face towards one or other of the Ends of the Intervals, that the fewer of the Roots may be cut off, and the more of them removed, and covered again. Let the Spits be thin for the better pulverizing of the Mould. The Hand-hoe will sometimes be useful in the Intervals, as well as in the Partitions.

Four or Five Perches of Land may suffice for making proper Trials.

The Expence of this will be little, though perhaps Ten times more than that which is done by the proper Instruments for the same Proportion of Land.

But I must give this Caution, that no Part of it be done out of the Reach of the Master’s Eye; for if it should, he may expect to be disappointed.

The richer the Land, the thinner it must be planted to prevent the lodging of Corn.

The Master ought to compute the Quantity of Seed, due to each Perch, at the Rate of Five or Six Gallons to an Acre, by Weighing, _&c._ as I have shewn in my Essay.

I cannot commend more than Two Partitions in a Row, or more than One, when the Intervals are narrow; because the broader the Row is, the more Earth will remain unpulverized, under the Partitions; too much of which Earth being whole, will disappoint, at least, one of the Differences mentioned in my xviith Chapter.

Indifferent Land I think most proper whereon to make the Experiment, and the most improper for Corn is barren Land, as the best brings the largest Crops.

To ascertain the Quantity of the Crop, take a Yard in the Middle of a Ridge, and weigh its Produce.

Every Year leave one Interval unhoed, to prove the Difference of that Side of a double or treble Row next to it, from the other Side next to the hoed Interval.

But it must be _noted_, that the Spade doth not always pulverize so much as the Plough, or Hoe-plough; therefore there may be occasion for more Diggings than there would be of Horse-hoeings.

One of the Observations that put me upon Trials of wide Intervals, and Horse work for Corn, was the following; _viz._ One Half of a poorish Field was sown with Barley; the other Half drilled with Turneps, the Rows Thirty Inches asunder, at the proper Season, and twice hoed with a Sort of Horse-hoe contrived for that Purpose (but nothing like that I have described); the Drill, beginning next to the Barley, left an Interval of the same (30 Inches) Breadth between the First Row of Turneps and the Barley, which, being sown on large Furrows, came up in a sort of Rows, as is common for Barley to come when sown on such wide Furrows. This Interval between the Barley and the Turneps had the same Hoeings as the rest, and had this Effect on the broad Row of Barley next to it; _viz._ Each Plant had many Stalks; it was of a very deep flourishing Colour, grew high, the Ears very long, and, in all respects, the Barley was as good as if it had been produced by the richest Land. The next Row of Barley had some little Benefit on the Side next to the strong Row; but all the rest of the Barley, either by the too late Sowing of it, the Poverty of the Soil (not being in any manner dunged), or else by the Coldness of the Land, or Coldness of the Summer, or by all of these Causes, though pretty free from Weeds, was exceeding poor, yellow, low, thin, and the Ears were very short and small.

I intended to have taken the exact Difference there was between the Produce of this outside Row, and one of those that stood out of the Reach of the hoed Interval: But I was disappointed by my Neighbour’s Herd of Cows, that in the Night broke in just before Harvest, and eat off almost all the Ears of the rich Row, doing very little Damage to the rest, except by treading it. It must be from the different Tastes, the one being sweet, and the other bitter, that they make their Election to eat the one, and refuse the other.

This accidental Observation was sufficient to demonstrate the Efficacy of deep Hoeing, which I look upon as synonymous to Horse-hoeing.

I immediately set about contriving my limbered Hoe, finding all other Sorts insufficient for the Exactness required in this hoeing Operation: Those drawn in any other manner, when they went too far from the Row, and the Holder went to lift the Plough nearer, it would fly back again, like the Sally of a Bell, and go at no Certainty not being subject to the Guidance of the Holder, as the limber Hoe-plough is. The _Michaelmas_ following I began my present Horse-hoeing Scheme; which has never yet deceived my Expectations, when performed according to the Directions I have given my Readers. And the Practice of this Scheme proves the Advantage of deep Hoeing, by the Ends of the Ridges and Intervals; for there, whilst the drawing Cattle go on the Headland that is higher, the Furrows are shallower, and the Corn of the Rows is always there visibly poorer in proportion to that Shallowness.

Another Proof of the Difference there is between deep Hoeing and shallow, is in the Garden, where a square Perch of Cabbages, the Rows of which are Three Feet asunder; the middle Row of them having the Intervals on each Side of it deeply and well dug by the Spade at the same proper time, when the rest of the Intervals are Hand hoed; this middle Row will shew the Difference of those Two Operations: But in this must be observed what I have here before mentioned, of turning the Back of the Spade to the Plants, to avoid the total removing them, especially in very dry Weather.

This Experiment hath been tried, and always succeeds with every one that has made the Trials.

But before any one makes his Trials of my Field-scheme, I would advise him to be Master of the Treatise, by making an _Index_ himself to it: This will both direct him in his Proceedings, and shew him the Rashness of those, who go into the Practice of my Husbandry, without the necessary Preparation; for they that do so now, seem to act as rashly, as they that went into it before the Treatise was published. ’Tis reasonable to presume, that such their Practice must be either different from, or contrary to mine.

This _Index_ may be also useful for discovering Pretenders by an Examination, without which, Gentlemen are liable to be imposed on by them, as I am afraid too many have been; for amongst all those who have undertaken the Management of my Scheme for Noblemen, or others, I declare I do not know one Person that sufficiently understands it: There may be some who have seen, or perhaps performed, some of the mechanical Part; but I don’t think it can be properly performed without a thorough Knowlege of the Principles, which cannot be expected of such illiterate Persons; and yet is necessary for the proper Applications in different Cases, which cannot be distinguished by Pretenders: Therefore, until the Scheme becomes common, the Management must be under the Direction of the Master himself, or of one who has past his Examination, and is faithful.

To the above Trials, I here add the following, together with some Alterations of the former.

Gentlemen who can get the _Smyrna_ Wheat, I advise to make Trials of it in single Rows, of between 17 and 18 to an Acre, in this Method; there being no Partitions, the Intervals will be of the same Width as in the Ridges of 14 to an Acre, that have Partitions of Ten Inches. Thus almost all the Earth of the Ridges may be pulverized by the Hoe-plough in the Field, or by the Spade in this Trial; and very little Hand-work will be necessary for cleansing out the Weeds that come in the Rows, and on each side of them. The Land will be the fitter for a succeeding Crop of Wheat with less Harrowing. But this must be observed, that, in regard to hard Frosts in Winter, and very dry Weather in Summer, the alternate Hoeing described in the Chapter of Turneps may be proper; lest the little Earth that may be left for the Row to stand on, when the Furrows are turned from both Sides of it, should not be sufficient to secure the Roots from the Injuries that may happen to them by being exposed either to Frost or Drought on both Sides of the Row at the same time.

In the Field, when the Ridges are all of an equal Breadth, the best Way is to plant Two of the single Rows at once, by setting the Two Beams of the Drill at the same Distance asunder, as each of the Ridges is broad; and the Beast that draws it must go in the Middle of the Interval, planting a Row on each Side of it; but if the Ridges are very unequal, the Beast (a little Horse is best) that draws the Drill must go on the Top of a Ridge, planting one Row thereon; and the Drill for this Purpose is the same as the Turnep-drill, except that the Beam-share, Seed-box, and Spindle, are the same as those of the Wheat-drill; and ’tis but to take off from the Wheat-drill one of its Beams, and place it in the room of the Beam of the Turnep-drill, and placing the Cross-piece of the Turnep-beam (see Plate 5.) on this Beam, and also a short Wheat-hopper to be drawn by the Turnep-standards, setting the Wheels near enough together; _i. e._ as near as the Wheels of the Wheat-drill are, I mean those which plant Two Rows.

Two Gallons of _Smyrna_ Wheat I judge will be Seed sufficient for an Acre, especially if planted early.

Planting one Row upon a Ridge, I think is the most advantageous Method of all; but, not being able to get any _Smyrna_ Wheat (tho’ I have been often promised it), I have made no Trial of it; and I do not believe the Plants of any other Sort of Wheat are large enough for such single Rows.

I am not quite a Stranger to this Wheat; for I have seen the Product of it, both in the Garden, and in the Field, above Forty Years ago.

I am now making Trials, in order to know how much a single Row of White cone Wheat will exceed half a double one: For this Purpose, I cause one Row of the double, with the Partition, to be dug out with a Spade, in Part of every Field, Two or Three Yards in a Place: These I intend shall be hoed as the double Rows are; and where the Hoe-plough doth not reach, the Spade shall supply its Use.

I do not expect this single Row will equal the double Row; but I am in no doubt but that it will produce more Grain than half a double Row.

I cannot tell whether the Sort of Cone-wheat that sends out little Branches on each Side of the Ear, might not succeed tolerably well in single Rows; for its Ear is, when well nourished, larger than the Ear of the White-cone; tho’ not near so large as that of the _Smyrna_.

Another Experiment I propose to be made as a Trial for the Satisfaction of such sceptical Gentlemen who may doubt the Truth of what I have related in p. 27, 28. concerning the wonderful Effect of deep Hoeing. In a Field of very poor old decayed St. Foin, let Two or Three Perches be hedged in, in a square Piece, and Two, Three, or more Intervals, of Three or Four Feet wide each, be well pulverized by the Spade, leaving between every Two of them, Two or Three Feet of the St. Foin unmoved. Begin this Work in Summer, and repeat the Hoeing pretty often, observing the Rules I have laid down for Hoeing the Intervals of Wheat. Let not the Back of the Spade be turned towards the unmoved St. Foin, from which it throws the Earth at the First time of Hoeing; which is contrary to the First Hoeing of Wheat with a Spade; because there would otherwise be Danger of moving Wheat-roots; but there is no Danger of moving the St. Foin Roots, unless you wholly dig them out: Therefore the best Way for this Hoeing is to dig with the Back of the Spade towards one or the other End of the Interval: This cuts off the fewest Roots, and covers the most of them, and may perhaps be sometimes best for Wheat also. When the Earth is turned towards the St. Foin Rows, the Spade’s Face will be towards them of course.

Be sure to leave Four or more Feet untouched next to the Hedge that bounds the Piece, to the End that the Increase of the hoed St. Foin may the more plainly appear by comparing its Plants with those that are not hoed.

If the Plants are very thick, make them thinner on one side of an Interval; and, on the other side, let them remain thick. You will certainly find the thin Plants most wonderfully increased in a Year or two, and the thick ones in proportion; and also the natural Grass, and all other Vegetables that grow near to the Intervals when they are well pulverized. I am confident mine, thus managed by Ploughs, increased some to an Hundred, some to a Thousand times the Size they were of before that Pulveration.

All the Methods I have here and elsewhere described for the Field, I advise to be tried in these few Perches for Experiments.

I think some of those Ridges whereon one End is to be managed differently from the other End, should be longer than Six Feet; else the Roots of the Wheat and Weeds may so mix, and draw Nourishment from one another in the Middle of the Ridge, that the Difference of the Managements may not so plainly be seen as when the Ridge is longer.

The few Perches of Land whereon any of the proposed Experiments are to be made, should be bounded in with dead Hedges; and should not be situate within Three or Four Poles of a live Hedge or Tree.

The Three Instruments to be used in these unexpensive Trials, are, the Spade, to supply the Use of the Plough and Hoe plough; the Hand-hoe; and a Rake, instead of Harrows.

I don’t know that I ever had an Acre yet, that was tolerably well managed in this Manner, but what produced much more.

CHAP. X.

_Of_ SMUTTINESS.

Smuttiness is when the Grains of Wheat instead of Flour, are full of a black, stinking Powder: ’Tis a Disease of Wheat, which I don’t know is usual any-where but in cold Northern Countries; for if it had been common in _Greece_ or _Italy_, there would probably have been some Word to express it by, in those Languages, as well as there is for the Blight.

I take it to be caused by cold wet Summers; and I was confirmed in this by several Plants of Wheat, taken up when they were in Grass in the Spring, and placed in Troughs in my Chamber-window, with some of the Roots in Water. These Wheat-plants sent up several Ears each; but at Harvest, every Grain was smutty; and I observed, none of the Ears ever sent out any Blossom: This Smuttiness could not be from any Moisture that descended upon it, but from the Earth, which always kept very moist, as in the aforesaid Mint Experiment. The Wheat-plants in the Field, from whence these were taken, brought very few smutty Grains, but brought much larger Ears than these.

Whatsoever the Cause[149] be, there are but Two Remedies proposed; and those are Brining, and Change of Seed.

[149] The largest grained, plump, fat Wheat, is more liable to Smuttiness, than small-grained thin Wheat.

Brining of Wheat, to cure or prevent Smuttiness (as I have been credibly informed), was accidentally discovered about Seventy Years ago, in the following Manner; _viz._ A Ship-load of Wheat was sunk near _Bristol_ in Autumn, and afterwards at Ebbs all taken up, after it had been soaked in Sea-water; but it being unfit for making of Bread, a Farmer sowed some of it in a Field; and when it was found to grow very well, the whole Cargo was bought at a low Price by many Farmers, and all of it sown in different Places. At the following Harvest, all the Wheat in _England_ happened to be smutty, except the Produce of this brined Seed, and that was all clean from Smuttiness. This Accident has been sufficient to justify the Practice of Brining ever since in all the adjacent Parts, and in most Places in _England_.

I knew Two Farmers, whose Farms lay intermixed; they bought the same Seed together, from a very good Change of Land, and parted every Load betwixt them in the Field. The oldest Farmer believed Brining to be but a Fancy, and sowed his Seed unbrined; the other brined all his Part of Seed, and had not a smutty Ear in his Crop; but the old Farmer’s Crop was very smutty.

Wheat for Drilling must have no other Brine, than what is made of pure Salt; for if there be any Brine of Meat amongst it[150], the Grease will not suffer the Wheat to be dry enough to be drilled.

[150] Urine also makes the Wheat so greasy, that it will not be dry time enough to be drilled.

If Seed-wheat be soaked in Urine, it will not grow; or if only sprinkled with it, it will most of it die, unless planted presently.

The most expeditious Way of brining Wheat for the Drill, is to make a very strong Brine; and when the Wheat is laid on an Heap, sprinkle or lave it therewith; then turn it with a Shovel, and lave on more Brine; turn it again with a Shovel, until, by many Repetitions of this, the Wheat be all equally wet. Next, sift on Quick-lime through a Sieve; turn the Wheat with a Shovel, and sift on more Lime; repeat this Sifting and Turning many times, which will make it dry enough to be drilled immediately; and this has been found sufficient to preserve uninfected Wheat from the Smut in a bad Year, the Seed being changed.

To dry it, we use[151] Quick-lime (that is, unslacked), which, beaten to Powder, and sifted thereon, confines the Brine to the Surfaces of the Grains, and suffers none of it to be exhaled by the Air: But when Lime has been long slacked, and is grown weak, ’tis unfit for this Purpose.

[151] But if this doth not afford Powder enough, the Pieces must be slacked immediately before using; for if the Lime lie long after it is slacked (especially that made of Chalk), it will become weak, and lose most of its drying Quality.