Part 28

I am sorry that this Farm, whereon I have practised Horse-hoeing, being situate on an Hill, that consists of Chalk on one Side, and Heath ground on the other, has been usually noted for the poorest and shallowest Soil in the Neighbourhood.

As a Yard in Length of my treble Row of the Third successive Crop of Wheat, without Dung or Fallow, produced Twenty Ounces of Wheat; which, allowing Six Feet to the Ridge, is about Six Quarters to an Acre; and, allowing Seven Inches to each Partition, and Two Inches on each Outside, is in all Eighteen Inches of Ground to each treble Row, and but just One-fourth Part of the Ridge. Now, if, in the old Husbandry, the Crop was as good all over the Ground, as it was in these Eighteen Inches of the treble Row, they must have Twenty-four Quarters to an Acre; but let them dung whilst they can, they will scarce raise Twenty-four Gallons of Wheat the Third Year, on an Acre of Land of equal Goodness; and let them leave out their Dung, and add no more Tillage in lieu of it, and I believe they will not expect Three Quarters to an Acre, in all the Three Years put together.

Eight Bushels make a Quarter.

The mean Price of Wheat, betwixt Dear and Cheap, is reckoned Five Shillings a Bushel; and therefore an Acre that would produce every Year, without any Expence, Eight Bushels, would be thought an extraordinary profitable Acre; but yet a drilled Acre, that produces Sixteen Bushels of Wheat, with the Expence of Ten or Fifteen Shillings, is above a Third Part more profitable.

’Tis commonly said, that a Farmer cannot thrive, who for want of Money is obliged to sell his Wheat under Five Shillings a Bushel; but if he will sell it dear, he must keep it when ’tis cheap; And his Way of keeping it is in the Straw, using his best Contrivances to preserve it from the Mice.

The most secure Way of keeping a great Quantity of Wheat, that ever I heard of, is by drying it. When I lived in Oxfordshire, one of my nearest Neighbours was very expert in this, having practised it for great Part of his Life: When Wheat was under Three Shillings a Bushel, he bought in the Markets as much of the middle Sort of Wheat as his Money would reach to purchase: He has often told me, that his Method was to dry it upon an Hair-cloth, in a Malt-kiln, with no other Fuel than clean Wheat-Straw; never suffering it to have any stronger Heat than that of the Sun. The longest time he ever let it remain in this Heat was Twelve Hours, and the shortest time about Four Hours; the damper the Wheat was, and the longer intended to be kept, the more Drying it requires: But how to distinguish nicely the Degrees of Dampness, and the Number of Hours proper for its Continuance upon the Kiln, he said was an Art impossible to be learned by any other Means than by Practice. About Three or Four and Twenty Years ago, Wheat being at Twelve Shillings a Bushel, he had in his Granaries, as I was informed, Five thousand Quarters of dried Wheat; none of which cost him above Three Shillings a Bushel.

This dried Wheat was esteemed by the London Bakers to work better than any new Wheat that the Markets afforded. His Speculation, which put him upon this Project, was, that ’twas only the superfluous Moisture of the Grain that caused its Corruption, and made it liable to be eaten by the Wevil; and that when this Moisture was dried out, it might be kept sweet and good for many Years; and that the Effect of all Heat of the same Degree was the same, whether of the Straw, or of the Sun.

As a Proof, he would shew, that every Grain of his Wheat would grow after being kept Seven Years.

He was a most sincere honest Yeoman, who from a small Substance he began with, left behind him about Forty thousand Pounds; the greatest Part whereof was acquired by this Drying Method.

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.