CROPS. 211 



These are remarkable facts, and well worthy the attention of 

 the farmers. 



Wheat is sometimes grown here upon a summer or naked 

 fallow, especially where the land is much infested with weeds : 

 but naked fallows are well nigh exploded in any improved sys 

 tem of English husbandry. Wheat generally comes once in a 

 four years rotation ; sometimes twice in five years, and in some 

 cases twice in seven years ; in some every alternate year, beans 

 forming the intermediate crop. The latter course, for sixteen 

 years, has been the practice of an eminent farmer in Norfolk, 

 whose admirably-managed farm I had the pleasure of visiting. 

 The land subjected to this treatment is a deep rich alluvion, 

 formed from the deposits under the sea, and the beans are most 

 thoroughly manured. 



The preparation of the land for wheat is made with extraor 

 dinary pains. The crop preceding it is usually turnips, or some 

 green esculent, which is consumed by sheep upon the land. 

 The turnips are of course most amply manured, and are gener 

 ally cultivated in drills. When the season for sowing wheat 

 arrives, these drills are opened by the plough, and the decom 

 posed manure very thoroughly distributed. It is considered bad 

 husbandry to apply green manure, or manure of any kind, except 

 ing from the folding of sheep upon it, to the land, the year the 

 wheat is to be sown ; but the result is always better, when the 

 sheep so folded, besides the turnips or other green feed with 

 which they are supplied, are liberally furnished with oil cake. 

 One of the most skilful farmers in Lincolnshire, who, by a suc 

 cessful husbandry, has risen from small beginnings to wealth, and 

 has established in comfort several sons upon farms in his vicinity, 

 ascribes his success wholly to the liberal use of oil cake for his 

 stock, considering it of the highest value in enriching his ma 

 nure. I had the pleasure of witnessing the most ample evidences 

 of his good husbandry. This system of enriching land by 

 folding sheep upon it in movable folds a custom long known 

 in England might in many instances be adopted in the North 

 ern United States, especially when the market for mutton is im 

 proved. This, I think after carefully watching its progress for 

 some years past it is destined to be ; especially when our breeds 

 of sheep, grown for this express object, are improved. Here 

 mutton may be considered as the favorite dish with all classes 



