Report on Spring-smon Wheats in 1873. 91 



Rough Chaff wheat, sown February 1-ith, was the best crop I grew ; and I 

 hope it will yield as much as 37 bushels to the acre. It is a good autumn wheat, 

 and very good for early sowing in the spring. 



Thick-set wheat I have only grown one year, and I cannot say more about 

 it than that I like it, and have sown a good breadth this year. 



These are the three sorts I have grown, and 1 have sent you two ears of 

 each, with time of sowing and cutting. I have not thrashed more than about 

 100 bushels, so can only guess at the yield, but I consider itJias been decidedly 

 a bad year for wheat in this district. 



There are several other good kinds of wheat grown. Creeping wheat does 

 well ; Browick's red is a good coarse wheat ; and for sowing in March Velvet 

 Chaff white comes well ; but it is very long jointed and seldom yields much. 

 April bearded wheat did very well this spring, but I would rather sow barley, 

 as the yield is a great deal more and the straw much more valuable. 



We began cutting wheat on the 13th of August. The winter Eough- 

 chaff wheat, sown 14th of February, was quite fit to cut about the 17th 

 of August, but the spring-sown Biddle's was not all cut until the 5th of 

 September. 



I do not think there was much wheat damaged by the rain, although we 

 had a good deal about the middle of harvest, but the weather was cold. 



I cannot give you the produce per acre, as I have not threshed, but probably 

 this year the spring wheat will average as well as the winter wheat, owing to 

 :S0 much of the latter having perished from the continual wet. As a rule, 

 autumn-sown wheat would yield from 15 to 20 per cent, more than spring- 

 sown, having the same advantages as to land, &c. ; but I have noticed that 

 when we have had a very bad autmnn sowing the spring wheat has generally 

 ■done well. 



D. Edwards. 



8. Long Sutton, Lincolnshire. 

 (483 acres : viz. 331 Arable and 152 Permanent Pasture.) 



The Soil is an alluvial loam of medium quality and power. 



The climate is equable, perhaps drier than in most parts of the kingdom, but 

 ■being near the sea on the border of the Great Wash, the cold north-easters are 

 very severe in the winter season ; but, on the other hand, nice sea-breezes pre- 

 vail in summer. 



dotation. — All regular rotations of cropping have been long abandoned, the 

 aim being to produce the utmost yield which the land can bear, aided by 

 liberal manurings and much artificial aid in foods to farm stock. 



In the year 1872 the cropping stood as follows : — 135 acres wheat, 22 acres 

 •oats, 85 acres potatoes, 35 clover, 22 mangolds, 23 turnips, 10 acres lucerne ; 

 besides gardens, yards, &c. In 1873 the cropping stood as follows : — 105 

 acres wheat, 42 acres barley, 28 acres oats, 45 acres potatoes, 30 acres clover, 

 18 acres mangolds, 10 acres swedes, 21 acres turnips and cabbage, &c. 



The difficulties of the wheat seeding-time were insurmountable in 1872 ; 

 every effort was made and much patience exercised ; but all was unfavourably, 

 not to say^wofully, got in ; and the crops in consequence were very indifferent 

 compared with average years, not probably equal to 3^ quarters per acre, 

 and of inferior quality. 



About 30 acres were left unsown until spring, and barley substituted 

 instead, which has yielded well. 



No wheat was spring-sown in 1873. ' 



The kinds of wheat sown in 1872 were Golden Drop red, Velvet-chaffed 



