IS 



THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 



move deeply the interval on the right or left hand, 

 as may be convenient ; and the depth must be 

 equal to the full length of the implement. The 

 strong pronged dung fork of the farm is better 

 fitted than the spade for digging potato crops : the 

 wide prongs do not cut the tubers as the close 

 blade of the spade; the pushing into the ground 

 is easier for the digger; and the narrow points 

 penetrate the ground more deeply, and leave a 

 greater number of holes to receive air and moisture. 

 No portion of the soil must be unmoved, more 

 especially the bottoms of the intervals, which, if 

 not dug and turned up, remain as firm rafters of 

 ground betwixt the loose ridglets in which the 

 tubers were produced. The drills are heaved and 

 moved by the many tubers of the potato plant; 

 and it is essential that the firm bottoms of the in- 

 tervals be dug and mixed with the pulverized earth 

 of the ridglets, and also with the undecomposed 

 remains of the farmyard dung which will be found 

 in the drills. These different bodies, being raised 

 and placed in a new position of looseness and 

 mixture, will present a fresh soil of varied elements 

 to eflfect fresh combinations and reciprocal affini- 

 ties. 



By this mode of raising from the ground the 

 ripened crops of potatoes, there are attained three 

 very important purposes of execution — the crop is 

 harvested ; the land is thoroughly cleaned of weeds 



and stones; and the substratum of the ground is 

 pierced by narrow points of implements, which 

 leave holes and pores for the permeation of air and 

 moisture. The digging and forking of the ground 

 confer the advantage of a loose condition, in 

 which the soil is placed to lie over winter, or sown 

 with Autumn wheat from one furrow of ploughing. 

 This moved condition is very favourable to the 

 heavy lands and stiflf bottoms on which potatoes 

 are generally cultivated, and which are unavoidably 

 consolidated in the sub soil by the workings of the 

 land for the cultivation of the crop. It is a 

 gardening performance intermixed with farming, 

 and varies the executions by a more beneficial 

 process. The expense is very much reduced, by 

 reason of the several objects that are attained ; and, 

 if not legitimately to be divided into three portions, 

 the whole expense is very considerably lessened, 

 from being wholly charged to the raising of the 

 potato crop. Two-fifths may be very fairly sub- 

 tracted from the whole expense as placed to the 

 account of the benefits conferred on the land by 

 the digging of the ground; and this moderate 

 calculation will not overrate the advantages of the 

 mode of harvesting the potato crop. It raises the 

 crop, digs the ground, forks the soil, gathers 

 stones and weeds, and opens the subsoil to the 

 beneficial permeations of air and moisture. 



J. D. 



THE HISTORY OF A STRAW-YARD. 



I have a very goorl landlord ; and if a whirlwind were 

 to sweep down all my farm-buildings past recovery by 

 anything that could be included as "repairs," very 

 likely he might be persuaded to realize, in actual brick, 

 mortar, mason-work, and joinery, that enchanting ideal 

 of a home for domestic animals — a covered farmstead. 

 But, unfortunately, an old barn, a dilapidated stable, 

 and a tumble-down granary were the only buildings my 

 predecessor had when he first became tenant ; and, by 

 way of improvement, he obtained a long line of open 

 shed, a waggon-hovel, and a brick wall, in place of the 

 miserable haulm-fence which had previously inclosed a 

 large court or yard for his uncomfortable stock. Well, 

 of course, I could not have all these pulled down, and a 

 bran-new farmery erected, after one of those beautifully- 

 engraved "plans, elevations, and sections," now so 

 familiar to the eye of the land-agent and agricultural 

 pupil ; and ameliorations of different kinds must con- 

 tent me. The landlord built me a better working- 

 horse stable, chair and harness-houses, a loose box, a 

 "hospital," a cow-house, and half-a-dozen smaller 

 houses for calves, pigs, and store-rooms. I had good 

 gates, good water-troughs, and division-fences to the 

 main court inclosed by all these convenient buildings ; 

 and, having enlarged my stack-yard to contain the in- 



creased produce to be looked for, I fancied 1 had a 

 tolerably comfortable steading to farm with. In course 

 of time, portions of the long shed, which was open to 

 the yard for the shelter of the cattle which there con- 

 sumed my straw with turnips and oilcake, were de- 

 tached, and inclosed with thorn-faggots, so as to make 

 feeding-stalls and boxes ; then proper brick walls took 

 the place of the thorns, and new mangers, and water- 

 troughs with supply-pipes, were set up. I fixed a 

 two-horse chaff-cutter; had my root-sheers and pulpers 

 (the latter supplanting in use a small steaming appa- 

 ratus) in places commodiously adjoining the stalls where 

 the fattening animals were ; and many of the appoint- 

 ments of a well-ordered establishment began to render 

 mine a respectable horaestall. 



But one essential point had been altogether over- 

 looked or slighted : ther^ was no provision for taking 

 care of the valuable manure produced either in the 

 open straw-yard or in the covered hovels. Sun and 

 wind dried out the moisture of the upper portions of the 

 manure, as the pigs rooted up the straw with their 

 omnivorous snouts, in search of anything nasty ; so 

 that, in some seasons, with little rain-fall in late spring, 

 I had mere wetted chaff and straw to cart out to the 

 dung-heap, instead of fermented rotten manure, aro- 



