THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 



atooks of six aheaves oa each ridge, every alternate stook 

 being afterwards led off the ridge on the east side of each 

 allotment, and weighed on the cart unthrashed. The weight 

 of the oats when thrashed being deducted from the gross, gives 

 the weight of straw, chaff, and loss, aa stated. The results are 

 given in table No. II. 



Howard's prize wheel-plough gives the greatest amount of 

 produce both in grain and straw, taking its combined plots, as 

 given ia table No. III. The work was exceedingly well exe- 

 cuted, especially that of No. 4, the man having a premhim 

 awarded him. The work of No. .0 was nicely cut, but not so 

 well closed as it should have been. This plough, from its 

 light draught, and being easily held, promises to come into 

 extensive use. It is so constructed that it can be adjusted to 

 any kind of work in the field by the ploughman with facility. 

 The furrow-slice is rectangular, the sole of which is cut flitter, 

 and is cleaner taken up, than that of any other plough the 

 reporter has seen working. Although the mould-board is 

 fully a half longer than that of Small's or the Currie plough, 

 yet the pressure being only on the lower edge of the furrow- 

 slice, and not against its whole side, as with them, its drauj^ht 

 is greatly lessened. Small's three-horse plough is next, taking 

 also its two combined plots, and gives the highest produce of 

 oats in No. 6. Small's two-horse plough, giving a rectangular 

 furrow, follows, and maintains its Ions-established character as 

 a good implement. The ploughinij performed by both teams 

 was well and uniformly done. The Currie plough, giving a 

 high-crested furrow-slice, is furthest behind in point of produce 

 of any of the two-horse ploughs, although its work on both of 

 its allotments was well executed, that of No. 3 being awarded 

 a premium as the best ploughing on the ground. This plough 

 seems to be getting rapidly into disuse. Although its work is 

 very uniform and pleasing to the eye, its false cut with the 

 heel, left at the bottom of the furrow, is a great objection, as 

 it increases the work of subsequent tillage, while the frequent 

 narrow furrows lengthen the operation of ploughing, and in- 

 crease its cost ; and the difficulty of keeping the irons in 

 proper working trim obliges the ploughman to visit the smithy 

 too often. 



The high-created furrow sometimes shows an advantage over 

 the rectangular one, when the laud is in good condition, and 

 sown immediately after ploughing. The frequent narrow fur- 

 rows with high apex faiilitate the action of the harrows, and 

 give aa equally-covered seed bed and uniform braird, while tlie 

 other shows best wlien time intervenes between ploughing and 

 sowing, so that the action of the weather may put the more 

 subatantisl furrow-slice into a mellow and friable state before 

 sowing. On the other hand, when the high crested furrow is 

 subjected to the action of raius and frosts, the high point of 

 the furrow is worn and washed away, sufficient mould being 

 awantiog to cover in the seed properly. 



The reporter has repeatedly tested for comparison the pro- 

 duce from a high-crested and that from a rectangular furrow. 

 Ia the 6eld reported upon in the year 1816, forty-five ploughs 

 competed at a match in two classes— ploughs turning a rectan- 

 gular furrow- slice, and thoie giving a high crested one; the 

 best of either class to be awarded the Highland Society's racdal, 

 along with the firit raoney-premiura of its class. This was 

 adjudged to a Carrington Currie plough's work, with a beau- 

 tifully-executed high crested furrow. On the crop being care- 

 fully tested, for the purpose of reporting to the Agricultural 

 Socie'y, it was found that the premium portion gave the least 

 produce of nine pints tested, five of which were rectangular 

 and four high-crested. 



As to ploughing matches generally, the report"' is of opinion 



that they are too much directed to the e.itcutioa of fine work 

 upon lea ground, and that an object would be obtained if agri- 

 cultural societies would follow the example of the local society 

 here, which has resolved to divert ita premiums from the 

 ploughing of lea to the ploughing of land after the turnip crop. 

 This ia expected to have beneficial results, a« in such cases the 

 ground ia invariably sown doTn with grass seeds for two years' 

 depasturing ; and it will be more satisfuctory for the Society 

 to promote tVe better execution of work which is to form the 

 basis of three crops — than for that w hich is to produce only 

 one, as in lea; while the hurried and careless manner with 

 which land after green crop is frequently worked, with the 

 cousequent eyesore of flanked ridges in pasture-land, may thus 

 be lessened. 



The Yester plough is farther behind in point of produce than 

 any of the otliers : it, however, exposes to the action of the air 

 the greatest surface of soil in a loose and broken stale, and 

 gives sufficient soil to fill up interstices before sowing, with 

 enough of mould remaining to cover the seed. When we take 

 into account that the common three-horse plough is second 

 in point of produce, the result upon the whole maybe deemed 

 satisfactory as far as regards deep ploughing. The Yester 

 plough probably went too far into the subsoil in one operation, 

 as the laud upon which the trial took place bad not been at 

 any time worked other than ia the ordinary way, with the ex- 

 ception of the subsoiling in 1817. The test of produce after 

 deep ploughing, where part of the till is worked upon, caunot 

 be held as conclusive, continued operations being required to 

 bring out its fall effects, and care being taken not to mix too 

 much of the bottom soil with the top at one time, but to do so 

 gradually year by year, giving a fresh portion of it to be acted 

 upon by the atmosphere, and_ rendered soluble. On the home- 

 farm of the Earl of Lauderdale this has been practised with 

 uniform success for the last five or six yeara, throughout the 

 whole course of the rotation : and I have no doubt but that 

 system of culture, as introduced by the Marquess of Tweeddale 

 at Yester, will be adopted more generally than it has yet been. 

 It may be said that it is more easy and economical to work 6 

 or 7 inches of the soil, and retain it in well-manured condition, 

 than 9 or 10 inches. But as the working of the larger body 

 of soil costs less than the smaller, as shown before, besides the 

 additional depth attained, lessening the expense of subsequent 

 tillage, may it not also carry a heavier crop ? — will it not be 

 more ready to take full advantage of the organic natural aids 

 to vegetation, and thus be kept at less cost in a state of fer- 

 tility than the smaller body of soil ?— and will not the air per- 

 meate the large, loose, and broken furrow more thoroughly, 

 and thus eliminate from it a greater amount of inorganic in- 

 gredients than the shallow body of soil? One thing is cer- 

 tain, that its resting on a deeper and drier bed maintains its 

 temperature, keeps it in tilth, and allows it to be worked 

 earlier, with less use of harrows and rollers, while its longer 

 continued capillary attraction supplies moisture to vegetation 

 at a period when that would be wanting The deficiency of 

 the shallow high-crested furrow strengthens this idea. A dis- 

 tinguished English agricul urist lately said, that " he contended 

 that ai'ration was as necessary to the roots of a plant as to its 

 leaves." 



To carry out deep tillage in all its integrity, it must go hand 

 in hand with thorough drainage and the stirring of the sub- 

 soil, which latter essential can be best effected, and at least 

 expense, with Reid's wheel eubsoil-plough. It is lighter in 

 draught, steadier to work, and easier held than the Deanston 

 subsoil-plough, which the reporter used for some time before 

 trying Reid's with an improved coulter and tail-board. With 

 this he has subsoiled upwards of a hundred acres, with every 



