18 The Agricultural Papers of George Washington 



10th. Began bricklaying today. Completed sowing, 

 with twenty-four quarts of oats, thirty-eight rows at Muddy 

 Hole ten feet apart, in the ground intended for corn. 



llth. Sowed twenty-six rows of barley in the same field 

 at Muddy Hole in the same manner, with the drill plough, 

 and with precisely the same workings the oats had adjoining 

 thereto. This was done with twelve quarts of seed. After 

 three ploughings and three harrowings, sowed millet in 

 eleven rows three feet apart, opposite to the overseer s house 

 in the Neck. Perceived the last sowed oats at Dogue Run, 

 and those sown in the Neck, were coming up. 



lth. Sowed sixteen acres of Siberian wheat, with eight 

 een quarts, in rows between corn, eight feet apart. This 

 ground had been prepared in the following manner. 1. A 

 single furrow; 2. another in the same to deepen it; 8. four 

 furrows to throw the earth back into the two first, which 

 made ridges of five furrows. These, being done some time 

 ago, and the sowing retarded by frequent rains, had got hard ; 

 therefore, 4. before the seed was sown, these ridges were 

 split again by running twice in the middle of them, both 

 times in the same furrow ; 5. after which the ridges were 

 harrowed ; and, 6. where the ground was lumpy, run a spiked 

 roller with a harrow at the tail of it, which was found very 

 efficacious in breaking the clods and pulverizing the earth, 

 and would have done it perfectly, if there had not been too 

 much moisture remaining from the late rains. After this, 

 harrowing and rolling where necessary, the wheat was sown 

 with the drill plough on the reduced ridges eight feet apart, 

 as above mentioned, and harrowed in with the small harrow 

 belonging to the plough. But it should have been observed, 

 that, after the ridges were split by the middle double fur 

 rows, and before they were closed again by the harrow, a 

 little manure was sprinkled in them. 



