6 OSIERS AND WILLOWS 



sho'uld be much longer and have more throw-over 

 than that of the ordinary plough, to enable it to turn 

 over the ridge or seam and lay it as flat as possible, and 

 plough the soil not less than 9 in. deep. This process 

 gives the young roots a better chance of penetrating 

 the deeper soil. The cost of this method works out, 

 including the after-harrowing, at 3 45. per acre; it 

 needs six horses and a more than usually strong 

 ploughman, owing to the great depth to be turned up 

 and to the exceptional strength required to handle 

 and turn round such a heavy plough. It is only 

 recommended where there are no specially undesirable 

 weeds in the land. 



If weeds such as burnet, docks, reed grass, pilewort, 

 and meadow-sweet are present, a double course of 

 ploughing to break up the land is very desirable. An 

 ordinary plough with two horses should go first and 

 take off about 3 in. of turf. This should be followed 

 by the stronger plough with six stout horses, as de- 

 scribed above, in order to break up the subsoil to a 

 further depth of 9 in. This system, which, together 

 with the harrowing, costs about 3 i8s. per acre (pre- 

 war price), enables the turf to be laid flat at the bottom 

 of the furrow, and as the head of the burnet is shielded 

 in the turf, it is largely killed. This weed is difficult 

 to eradicate, and if odd patches of it appear again the 

 following summer, the most effectual treatment is to 

 have the patches forked out. Hoeing tends to pro- 

 pagate rather than kill, and if the men employed use 

 reasonable care the roots of the willows will not be 

 damaged by the forking process. 



In preparing for osiers at Loughborough in 1910 it 

 was found that the use of a steam cultivator was the 

 most efficacious way of getting rid of large masses of 



