Sowing Beans in Spring and Autumn. 37 



and also that they may be sown in autumn when the state of 

 the land and the labour of the farm will permit, and thus cur- 

 tail the labour of spring — which is always a busy period — so as 

 to apply the strength of the farm in preparing for other kinds of 

 corn, &c. 



As I am writing from practical experience and observation 

 extending over a period of fifteen years, I do not care to enter into 

 a philosophical discussion regarding the habits of plants, nor to 

 dilate on insectology. All that I aim at is to state results and leave 

 causes pretty much alone. I may, therefore, say that I never saw 

 winter beans much damaged by blight or any other disease, but 

 have frequently seen spring beans almost entirely destroyed by 

 various kinds of insects about the time of blossoming ; so much so, 

 that the land has been ploughed up and sown with some other 

 green crop. I never knew a case of winter beans failing so signally 

 in summer as to lead us to adopt such a sacrifice ; and, therefore, 

 winter beans have a decided advantage over spring beans on the 

 score of disease. Winter beans have frequently failed in spring, 

 however, when sown too late in autumn, or when sown on wet 

 undrained clay in severe winters. Late sowing should, therefore, 

 be avoided, and so also should wet land. The severity of winter 

 cannot, it is true, by any means be avoided, but its consequences 

 may be rendered harmless, as far as regards beans, by attending 

 to draining and early sowing. If beans are sown early, say at 

 the end of September, or beginning of October, they will soon 

 come up out of the reach of vermin, and be enabled to take a 

 good, deep, and wide-spreadhold of the soil, which no winter we 

 have ever seen was severe enough to destroy. Indeed, we have 

 had winter beans so far above ground in October, as to be in an 

 excellent state for hoeing ; and when this was done in dry wea- 

 ther, the cultivation required in spring was very light. When 

 beans are sown early the vegetation above ground is almost 

 entirely destroyed by a severe winter, but in spring a second 

 growth takes place, and continues till harvest, which is usually 

 at the commencement of wheat harvest, whereas spring beansybZ/o?/? 

 wheat, and are a month later than winter beans ; that is also a 

 recommendation of winter beans which should not be overlooked. 

 The disadvantages of winter beans aie alleged to be failure in 

 severe winters, and a less yield than spring beans. On very 

 retentive clay soils spring beans should have the preference, 

 to obviate any chance of failure by severe frosts ; but I certainly 

 never saw a single instance of failure occur from severe weather 

 but what might be traced to the predisposing causes of late 

 sowing, and sowing on very wet land. The yield of spring beans 

 has been occasionally higher than any crop of winter beans we 

 know of: but the yield of winter beans is more uniform, as 



