10 



MARYLAND, 



Cecil county. — " It is difficult to compare TV'lieat sown by drill and broadcast, 

 as nearly all is sown wholly by the one or the other method. Mine was sown 

 broadcast, and it was considerably injured, A neighbor sowed by drill, and 

 his is also injured. After several experiments, he is rather unfavorable to drill- 

 ing:. He thinks too much open space is left unoccupied between the drills. 

 A part of his ground he drilled both ways, putting on, as he thinks, an equal 

 quantity of seed, or nearly so, in both portions. That drilled both ways has 

 much the best appearance. My own opinion is, that drilled wheat is less in- 

 jured than broadcast. A few years ago a neighbor, an Englishman, ribbed a 

 part of his ground in ploughing the second time with a right-hand plough, run- 

 ning each succeeding furrow at the right-hand of the preceding one. He then 

 broadcas^ted the whole and harrowed. That on the ribbed portion came up as if 

 drilled only a little wider a-part, and was by far the best when harvested. I 

 tried the same method once, and drilled alongside of it. I could see no very 

 material difference in the yield." 



Carroll county. — " The frtr/^z-sown wheat is very good, but the late-sown is 

 below the average. When will the farmers learn wisdom I" 



NEW JERSEY. 



" The reports from this State, and others in the east, show that the winter 

 was favorable, hence no test could be well made of the relative merits of drill 

 and broadcast sowing. In one county of this State, where much wet soil pre- 

 vails, the broadcast was thought to be injured one-fourth, and the drilled unin- 

 jured; and I also find that new land has escaped when equally exposed. Can 

 you give us the philosophy of this ?" 



MISSOURI. 



Crawford county. — " There has been hardly the itsual amount of fall wheat 

 soAvn in this section on account of the drought last fall, which lasted till October 

 1. Having been sowed late, and got a poor start, a large amount has been 

 fruzen out, which will cause our crop in this section to be poor. Spring wheat 

 is not sown here yet; I am satisfied it woidd do well." 



St. Louis county. — " There is unfortunately far too little drilling in of wheat 

 in this neighborhood, so but little can be said by way of comparison, but it ia 

 all in favor of the use of the drill." 



KEIVTUCKY, 



Mercer county. — " The past winter has demonstrated to me beyond a doubt 

 the advantage of the drilled over the broadcast sowing of wheat. Owing to the 

 system of labor in Kentucky, and the inability of the negro generally to handle 

 machinery, but little of it has been used until within the last few years, in either 

 sowing or harvesting grain. But from my observation in other States of the 

 present growing crop of wheat, the difference in the mode of sowing is marked, 

 and altogether favorable to the drill. Also, I am satisfied that early sowing 

 and dee]? ploughing are the best, as attested by the present growing crop." 



Garrard county. — " With regard to the value of the drill over broadcast sow- 

 ing, I will remark that the drill is an innovation on the " institution," and of 

 course very cautiously introduced ; requiring more intelligence to work them than 

 brute force, therefore not extensively nsed. But I think the difference fully as 

 great as I have put it. In that sown broadcast, I think the yield will be less 

 than a third of a crop, while that drilled will be very nearly a full crop — aU 

 taken together, a little over half a crop." 



