Mreaking up Pastures. 11 



the ashes be spread evenly on the land : if you wait until they 

 are cold, combustion will have gone too far, and the ashes will 

 not prove so beneficial as when a great portion of the vegetable 

 matter is merely charred. The black ashes are better than those 

 of a red colour. In burning, much depends upon good judgment 

 and management ; the fiies burn much inore slowly, and require 

 more attention, when the weather is damp ; but better ashes are 

 then made than in the dry windy weather that frequently prevails 

 in the month of March. As soon as the ashes are spread, horse- 

 plough them in with a very narrow and shallow furrow. It is 

 scarcely possible to plough the land too lightly ; for ashes have 

 always a tendency to work downwards, and it is desirable to 

 keep them as near to the top as possible. Another horse-ploughing 

 across the first furrows will sometimes be required, with harrow- 

 ing, rolling, and the usual operations for reducing the soil to a 

 fine tilth. 



When the proper season for turnip-sowing arrives, begin by 

 drilling swedes, turnips, rape, or a mixture of rape and turnips : 

 either of these crops would be likely to succeed, especially with 

 an allowance of artificial manure. Part of the ashes made from 

 the burned turf should be reserved for drilling with the turnip- 

 crop, unless it has been determined to use the liquid-manure- 

 drill. 



Sometimes newly-broken land does not get sufficiently pul- 

 verised to allow the drill to work freely at first. In such cases 

 it will be better to adopt the old-fashioned plan of sowing broad- 

 cast ; so that the small seeds may fall into the crevices, and be 

 covered by the use of a chain-harrow, or the common bush- 

 harrow ; the ground should finally be made firm with an iron 

 roller, Cambridge presser, or clod-crusher, and a good crop may 

 then be reasonably expected. 



We now come to the consumption of the first root-crop ; and 

 I would strongly advise that this should be done with sheep as 

 early in the season as is practicable, especial care being taken 

 that the crop be equably consumed over every part of the 

 field. The first turnip-crop is frequently patchy, even where 

 great care and labour have been bestowed upon it : in one spot it 

 may be superabundant, while in another it has almost failed. In 

 such cases a little expense in carting roots to these Dare places 

 would be repaid twentyfold. This may appear like " robbing 

 Peter to pay Paul ;" but as the two will work together in part- 

 nership for the future, it is desirable that their powers should be 

 equalised. The addition of cake or corn to the food of the 

 sheep when on the turnips will, of course, increase the prospects 

 of an abundant corn-crop in the following season. 



Before any horse-ploughing is commenced it will be advisable 



