258 Cultivation of Arabic Land. Woad -Gathering the Crop. 



be performed after each cropping of the leaves of the plants, as in the former 

 cafe. 



The expenfe of performing this bufmefs will be different in different cafes ; 

 but where labourers are in fufficient number, the fii ft hoeing will moftly be done 

 at about fix ot feven (hillings the acre, and the fucceeding ones at about half the 

 price, provided it be executed before the weeds have rifen to too great a height. 

 Jn many places,the buiinefs of weeding and cropping the leaves of the plants is per 

 formed by the fame perfons, at a fixed price for the acre, according to circumftances. 



Gathering the crop. In the fpring-fown crops the leaves are generally ready to 

 be gathered towards the latter end of June or beginning of July, according to 

 the nature of the foil, feafon, and the climate. But when put in at a later period in 

 the fummer, the crops are often fit to be gathered earlier. This work fhould, how 

 ever, always be executed as foon as the leaves are fully grown, while they retain 

 their perfect green colour and are highly fucculent ; as when they begin to turn 

 pale much of their good nefs is expended, and they become lefs in quantity and of 

 an inferior quality. 



In performing the bufinefs, a number of bafkets are provided in proportion to 

 the extent of crop, and placed in the field, into which the leaves are put as foon as 

 they are taken from the plants, which is done by the hand, by grafping them firmly 

 and giving them a fort of twift. On good foils, in favourable feafons, the plants 

 will often rife to the height of eight inches or more ; but in other circumftances 

 they feldom attain more than four or five : and where the lands are well managed, 

 in refpect to the culture of the plants, they will often afford two or three ga 

 therings ; but the beft cultivators feldom take more than two, which are fome- 

 tiines mixed together in the manufacturing of them. The after croppings, when 

 they are taken, areconftantly kept feparate from the others, as they would in 

 jure the whole if blended together, and confiderably diminifh the value of the 

 produce. The beft method, where a third cropping is either wholly or only par 

 tially made, is to keep it feparate, forming it into an inferior kind of woad. The 

 produce upon an acre of land, when well managed, in favourable feafons, is moftly 

 from about a ton to a ton and a half. The price varies confiderably, but for 

 woad of the prime quality it is often from twenty. five to thirty pounds the ton, and 

 for that of an inferior quality fix or feven. 



In the parts of the crops that are referved for feed, it is a pradice with fomc 

 cultivators to crop the leaves two or three times the firft year, and then leave 

 the plants to run up to feed in the following ; but it is a better practice to only 

 remove the fide leaves, as in this way the plants are lefs weakened, and the pro- 



