OF THE COUNTY OF DOWN. 69 



clover invariably precede barley or wheat, may like 

 that country retain its productive qualities without di 

 minution, probably for ages. And when we add to 

 thefe ameliorating vegetables juft fpoken of, potatoes, 

 cabbages, carrots, peas, beans, vetches, &c. the rota* 

 lion of crops may be varied ad infinitum ; adapting the 

 change of fpecies to the nature of the foil. In this 

 county, except from the diverfity given by potatoes, 

 (with fome few exceptions) we have nothing but the 

 one dull round of crops of grain upon the fame field j 

 until being worn out it is given up, and another por- 

 tion is attacked with the fame fenfelefs obftinacy, and 

 reduced to the fame Aate. Nothing is more common 

 than to hear a farmer fay, his ground will produce but 

 one good crop* after potatoes, and nothing is more 

 common than to fee him, with that convidlion on his 

 mind, rifk another crop without even a fecond plough-, 

 ing; whereas, if he laid down this field with clover 

 or hay-feed, he would nearly have a certainty of four 

 years good produce from one manuring ; fir ft potatoes, 

 fecond barley or oats, third clover or hay, and fourth 

 oats, excellent, or probably wheat. Thus, by dividing 

 a farm into fix parts, and manuring every year one-. 







fixth, there will be two-fixths in grain, and two-fixths 

 under preparation for grain, two more for grafs, or 

 any other management agreeable to this fyftem. The 

 only part of this county, where any thing refembling a 

 rotation is purfued, is in the barony of Lecalc ; I mean 



generally^ 



