THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE, 



413 



the day of meeting on the BBsize day, causing the absence of 

 80 many members ; but was highly gratified with the very 

 able lecture, and with the very interesting discussion which 

 it had called forth, and remarked that the opinion of the 

 speakers fully corroborated the assertion of Mr. Evans that 



a distinct breed of our domestic animals may be raised and 

 maintained. 



A vote of thanks was then passed to Mr. Evans and the 

 Chairman, to which these gentlemen responded, when the 

 meeting was terminated. 



KINGSCOTE AGRICULTURAL ASSOCIATION, 



CULTIVATION OF MANGEL WURZEL. 



Mr. Burnett said: Gentlemen, the first subject oa the 

 circular for this evening's discussion, is "The cultivation of 

 mangel wurzel, and its use." It being one of great importance, 

 I feel sorry some one more able than myself did not undertake 

 to bring it before the meeting ; however, I will at once tell the 

 little I know, and hope every one present will do the same. 

 On all good loams and clay soils mangel is, or will soon be 

 the staple root crop ; and on our light brashy, in this neigh- 

 bourhood, we find it yield a much larger amount of highly 

 nutritious food, than any other root yet introduced, and also a 

 more certain crop than either swedes or turnips, for some 

 years past. There are a great mauy varieties now cultivated ; 

 but those mostly grown in this neighbourhood are the red and 

 yellow globes, which are most suitable for our light soils, 

 their root not going so deep in search of food as the long 

 varieties ; they also keep better, owing to their not being so 

 much broken in storing. I prefer the yellow, as I have always 

 grown the heaviest crop of them, when grown side by side of 

 red ; they may not be so good in quality, or may be of a different 

 flavour, having observed the sheep choose to eat the red first, 

 when they were hauded out to them. The long varieties 

 require deep cultivation ; but the globes will grow where any 

 of our other roots will. I have often seen the largest mangel 

 on the head land, and other portions of the field where it has 

 been trodden hard. The general practice is to sow mangel on 

 land that has produced a straw crop the preceding year. If 

 there is couch in the land, or if over-run with black grass or 

 other weeds, no time should be lost, after the straw crop is off, 

 in having it skimmed over ; having used several implements to 

 perform this operation, such as Bentall's scarifier. Dean's 

 Savory's, and others. I find the common plough, with a 

 broadshare, to be the most eflScient implement ; it not only 

 cuts off the weeds more regularly, but they are left in a better 

 position for the drags to separate them from the soil : the 

 couch should then be picked off, and burnt in large heaps, if 

 weather permit ; but should wet weather prevent the burning, 

 my practice has been, after the weeds have lain on the 

 surface about two months, to have them ploughed five or six 

 inches deep or more, if not prevented by rocks. The land is 

 left in this state till March, then cultivated ; afterwards 

 apply a pair of heavy drags, then harrow once or twice 

 in a place, as may be needful, to separate the little live couch 

 from the soil that may remain, which is then picked off, and 

 the laud is ready for ridging, which is done twenty-seven 

 inches apart. About fourteen load of farm-yard dung is then 

 put in the furrows, and three hundredweight of guano, or 

 equal value of Proctor's mangel manure, sown broadcast ; the 

 manure is then covered by a common plough, going once in a 

 place in the middle of the ridge, a roll following after, to 

 compress the soil and to get a fine seed-bed, and also tends to 

 keep the land in a moist state. The best time to sow is the 

 third week in April ; if deferred till May, the seed ought to be 

 soaked in water twenty-four hours before sowing. The method 

 I adopt, in depositing the seed, is one of rather old origia ; but 



I have always found it do well, at very little extra expence . 

 A man walks along the furrow, with a stick about four feet 

 long, tapering towards the point; makes the holes about 

 fourteen inches apart ; giving the stick a twist, which prevents 

 the mould from filling up the holes ; a woman follows, 

 depositing the seed at the rate of 5 lbs. per acre ; another 

 woman follows with a small rake or hoe, and covers the seed ; 

 the ridges are again rolled. The singling out I prefer having 

 done by pulling them out with the hand ; I have had it done 

 by boys and girls at an expense of Ss. per acre, and have found 

 it answer better than when done by the hoe, especially in dry 

 weather. In about a fortnight after the top of the ridge is 

 gone over with the hand-hoe, a second and sometimes a third 

 hoeing is require]. I commence horee-hoeing between the 

 rows before or after singling ; in most seasons I horse-hoe 

 four times. We now come to the storing of the roots. I 

 used to have the tops twisted off, but now I have them cut, 

 finding it less expensive, and the mangel keep equally as well. 

 Last year I let eleven acres to four men to get up and cut the 

 tops off, which they did in four and a-half days ; three women 

 and a man filled them in two carts in the same time; we store 

 them in houses or pits to keep them from frost, which is all 

 the care mangel requires, unless a very large quantity is put 

 together, then ventilation is necessary. Under this system of 

 cultivation I have had good success ; however, last year having 

 a field of light soil to put to mangel, and anxious to economise 

 labour, I tried a different method, which I am pleased to say 

 proved equal to my expectations ; this field was eleven acres, 

 and as I tried three systems of cultivation, I will call them 

 number 1, 2, 3. — No. 1 was manured (on the stubble) with 

 twelve loads of rotten dung, and raftered in at the same time : 

 No. 2 was manured with eighteen loads of green or long dung, 

 and ploughed in : No. 3 was ploughed at the same time, and 

 the same quantity of long dung put in a heap, and applied in 

 the spring (put in ridges as before described). The rafters of 

 No. 1 was turned over in February, before commencing 

 ridging ; in April I had the whole field cultivated across the 

 rafters and the ploughing, then harrowed, and after applying a 

 dressing of artificial manure at a cost of 32s. per acre, it was 

 ridged twenty-seven inches apart, the seed deposited, and 

 other operations performed as in former seasons. To my 

 surprise the mangels came up stronger, and looked better on 

 No. 3 ; the first three months after that time, I could perceive 

 no difference of either lota, and when taken up I found by 

 weighing twenty perch of No. 2 and 3, there was five hundred- 

 weight per acre more on No. 2, than on 3. I did not weigh 

 No. 1, but was satisfied there was no perceivable difference ; 

 the artificial used was Proctor's mangel manure and Peruvian 

 guano, one acre manured with guano at the same money- 

 value as the mixture of Proctor's guano, on which there 

 was the same quantity of food. Although they did not look so 

 well as the others for some time, yet at the time of storing 

 they appeared in a more growing state ; this may be accounted 

 •or, owing to the very dry weather in the first part-of the 



