46 



THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 



it, then it becomes the desire and the duty of every 

 euterprisiug farmer to raise as much produec from 

 his land as he possibly can, and at the least possible 

 expense to kecj) his land in an improving condition. 

 And I would recommend that pi'oduce be more in 

 the shape of beef, mutton, and wool, and less of corn, 

 as is too frequently the case in a hill-and-dalc 

 country like this, and especially on second and third 

 class land ; wc cannot bear in mind too much, the 

 bad effect which under-stocking and over-cropping 

 have had on the greater part of the laud in this 

 neighbourhood. 



If we would look at the present price of certain 

 kinds of farm produce — for instance, butter and 

 wool, the average price of the latter article having 

 been, for 50 years preceding 1S5G, 13ld., and has 

 since been more — and calculate the dilTerence of the 

 cost that these articles, as well as mutton, can be 

 raised at on inferior soils, and compare it with that 

 of corn, our appetites would diminish for grain 

 crops. Light soils can be ranged in three different 

 classes — first, land of the best quality is often 

 situated in the vales, in smaller quantities togetlier, 

 and is capable of producing corn to greater advan- 

 tage, while farms of that kind are less adapted for 

 sheep-keeping. But even on that laud I would not 

 recommend the four-course system, both on account 

 of its being more severe upon the land, and requiring 

 greater expense, both in tlie shape of procuring 

 manure, and keeping it free from weeds. When 

 land is ploughed out, after having lain one year only 

 in grass, and perha])s been mown, and sometimes 

 twice, should it not be clean, the weeds increase 

 with the following crop, without the land being able 

 to produce a quantity sufficient to check their 

 growth much, both for want of rest and from ex- 

 haustion. 



On land of the second and third quality, if the 

 farm be a large one, so as to render it capable of 

 being made a useful grazing farm, I will not attempt 

 to fix any system, but would recommend the five in 

 preference to the four-course ; as liglit laud, which 

 does not exceed one pound per acre rentable value, 

 can never be cultivated to grovf corn to advantage, 

 and compete with the good corn-growing districts. 

 It is therefore uecessaiy, on such soils, to have 

 recourse, in a measure, to some other mode ; and 

 there is none more likely to repay the enterprise of 

 the farmer, than to endeavour to raise as much green 

 food for cattle and sheep as he can, with as little 

 draught and manual labour as possible, as the im- 

 port trade from foreign countries is never likely to 

 hurt the English grazier in our day, if ever. There 

 is a system, gentlemen, that has olten engaged my 

 mind, which although it may appear to you to be much 

 out of the common way, yet I think on suitable 

 situations would be Ibuud to answer, if properly 

 carried into effect : I can best describe it to you by 

 supposing a farm of 450 acres, the whole or major 

 part of which was capable of producing turnips, 150 

 acres to lie in permanent grass, 20 of which sliould 

 be mown every year for hay, and the reinaiuder in 

 pasture, leaving 300 acres under the plough, to be 

 managed in a six-course shift, viz., 50 acres of oats, 

 upon lea ; 50 acres of turnips, after oats ; 50 acres 

 rapi' and seeds, after hirnips : and the remaining 

 150 acres in first, second, and third years' grass, of 



50 acres each. This mode of farming would at all 

 events secure a fertilizing tendency on the land, a 

 satisfaction to the landlord, and an abundant supply 

 of food and clothing for the consumer, as well as a 

 remunerative i^rolit to the tenant, provided his lease 

 was long enough, as he would always have his land 

 clean and in good condition ; and, should corn ever 

 much outreach other farm produce in price, it would 

 be in a fit condition to be ploughed out and cro])ped 

 in the above described way. Three hundred acres of 

 lillage-land could be well managed with two 

 draughts and a half. The only item of expense that 

 would approach near to that ordinary mode of farm- 

 ing would be the seedsman's bill, which would be 

 heavy ; and the only great difference in the kinds of 

 stock ke|)t ought to be, not to keep many ewes, nor 

 to feed many cattle in the folds in winter, which is 

 not only wrong, but often unprofitable in the end, 

 under any system on thin land ; but to be content 

 to make as many young cattle fit for the spring 

 markets as you can, with 50 acres of oat-straw, 

 which would be in quantity equal to 100 acres under 

 some systems of management ; and 50 acres of tur- 

 nips, one-half taken off, and leaving the leaves upon 

 the ground, along with the other half to be eaten on 

 the ground by sheep. It would not require a large 

 farm, conducted in this manner, to produce 1000 

 fleeces of good wool in one year, provided the sheep 

 were mostly hoggets, and properly conducted ; as 

 the whole of the farm would be producing, instead of 

 the one half lying in a state of poverty and nearly 

 useless, while the other half is used to abuse with 

 growing corn, and therefore becomes poor also. 



Soils most dilBcult to manage are those of an open 

 clay-saudy nature, such as rabbits can browse in ; as 

 its appetite for manui-e and the expense of freeing it 

 from weeds, which it is difficult to do, are such as to 

 swallow up the price of the crops so much, that they 

 often do not repay for cultivating, and especially 

 when kept in the four-course system. I would 

 rather recommend that it should be cropped alter- 

 nately with corn and turnips, which ought to be 

 eaten off by sheep, and the corn to exchange in turn 

 between oats and maslin, till the land be perfectly 

 clean, and in a fit condition to be laid down, either 

 with or without a corn crop, to lie from three to 

 seven years, or so long as might be deemed advan- 

 tageous ; if lime was required, it should be applied 

 moderately, in the month of April, previous to sow- 

 ing with turnips. It might be beneficial to sow 

 fourths or fifths of red clover each time it was sown 

 with corn, for food for lambs in October, so as to 

 keep sheep going over it as much as possible. It 

 ought to be well ploughed, and no oftcner than 

 woiJd suffice to keep it clean, and not to trust too 

 mucii to the uncertainty of the grubber to effect 

 that purpose. Grubbers were introduced into this 

 neighbourhood to assist in cleansing the land, and it 

 will be well if they have not a contrary effect. Light 

 land in this country, when in turn to be followed, is 

 generally sown with turnijis, which ought not only 

 to be well manured, but well managed in every re- 

 spect, as the turnip crop is the most important one of 

 the whole course. After my land has been made 

 ready for the drills to be raised and the dung to be 

 put in, which is done in the way I)cst known by 

 raising and splitting, the whole is manured with 



