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The Country Geniletnan^s Magazine 



RECLAIMING MOUNTAIN LAND. 



AT the Show of the South Tyne Agri. 

 cultural Society last week, two prizes, 

 in the shape of two handsome solid silver 

 cups, presented by the Rev. Dixon Brown, of 

 Unthank Hall, and J. G. F. Hope Wallace, 

 Esq., Featherstone Castle, were given for the 

 greatest improvement, by a proprietor or 

 tenant, in unreclaimed mountain land or hill 

 pasture, made within the ten preceding 

 years, and in extent not less than six acres 

 in one piece or plot. The entries included — 

 Messrs Simon Elliott, the Knarr; George 

 Stobbart, Ashholme ; Thomas Bywell, Burn- 

 stones ; R. Tweddell, Burnstones ; Wm. 

 Holmes, Town Green, Knarsdale; Jas. 

 Green, Knarsdale ; Thos. Little, Far House, 

 Knarsdale ; — Baxter, Greenhaugh, Knars- 

 dale ; and Wm. Parker, Knowhead, Knars- 

 dale. The following is the report and award 

 of the judges, INIr J. Usher, Simonburn, and 

 Mr Clark, Featherstone : — 



'' After examining the whole of the re- 

 claimed land entered for competition, and 

 carefully considering the schedules handed in 

 by the competitors, the judges awarded the 

 first prize to Mr Thos. Little, Watch Cross? 

 CarHsle, and the second to Mr Simon Elliott, 

 Knarr Farm, Knarsdale. The land reclaimed 

 by Mr Little is an allotment, 20 acres in ex- 

 tent, belonging to the Far House Farm, 

 Knarsdale, and is at an elevation of about 

 1000 feet, with an exposure sloping to the 

 north-west. The soil is peaty hazel, with a 

 clayey subsoil of good quality, resting on 

 limestone and freestone. Previous to its im- 

 provement the land was very wet, chiefly pro- 

 ducing heather, wire bent, and rushes, and its 

 probable value was from is. 6d. to 5s. 6d. 

 per acre. The chief obstacles opposed to its 

 improvement were bad roads and inaccessi- 

 bility. The operations of reclamation were 

 commenced in November 1862, and were as 

 follows: — Enclosing with stone walls; second, 

 draining 4 feet deep and 9 yards apart ; third, 

 liming in the proportion of 120 Carlisle 



bushels of lime to the acre, and in the spring 

 of this year a portion of it was well salted, to 

 requicken the lime. The mode of reclama- 

 tion might thus shortly be stated as draining 

 and liming, and from these operations a close 

 set sward of natural grasses has been pro- 

 duced. The whole cost, without fencing, has 

 been ^Qq, 5s. per acre, which has been laid 

 •out in the following manner : — Draining, 

 £$, 5s, ; liming, £/s^. After draining the 

 lime was spread on the surface, without burn- 

 ing the heather where the land was hard and 

 heathery. The lime was laid in heaps on the 

 land and allowed to slack before being ap- 

 plied, it then being more effectual in destroy- 

 ing the heather and tendering the soil for the 

 production of grasses, but where soft and 

 grassy it was spread at once. Mr Simon 

 Elliott's allotment is about 1 2 acres in extent, 

 and lies at an elevation of about 950 feet, 

 with a sloping southern exposure. It is black 

 topped soil, with a clay subsoil on freestone 

 rock. Before reclamation its natural products 

 were heather, bent, and rushes, and it was very 

 wet. The rent paid for it was 5s. per acre. 

 The operations were commenced in 1866, 

 and were similar to Mr Little's, but were 

 carried out at rather less expense, the drains 

 being only 3 feet deep, which scarcely 

 seemed so effective as the 4 feet drains. 

 Owing to the reclamation being jointly carried 

 out by the landlord and tenant, the expendi- 

 ture could not be given accurately, but was 

 somewhere about ;^8 per acre. This plot 

 is in pasture and has a fair sward, which is 

 rapidly improving. The judges highly com- 

 mended Mr T. By well's, Burnstones, whose 

 allotment has been drained, for the portion 

 he has reclaimed by soiling and liming, and 

 had there been 6 acres completed in this 

 manner in one place or plot, they would 

 certainly have awarded him a prize. The soil 

 and climate in this district seem so peculiarly 

 favourable to the production of pasture, that 

 the judges found white clover and succulent 



