Jljfr. Llvingjlon on ihe Effects oj Shade, ^\\ 227 



I to 3. This ground I fowed with buckwheat, on tlic i(t oF 

 July, from a perfuafion, that the mere abfcncd of a portion of 

 light, at a feafon of the year, when the days arc very long, and 

 the fun inconveniently hot (particularly to buckwheat, whofe 

 blolToms drop off without producing grain, if the heat of the 

 fummer's fun is for two or three days untemperated with 

 clouds) could not be very prejudicial to this plant, or at leaft 

 that the fhade of trees at each end, which were equally thick, 

 would be, in that cafe, equally prejudicial. The contrary however^ 

 is the faB. — Gypfum having been ftrev/ed over the field, the 

 whole has fuch a degree of luxuriance as I have never before 

 feen ; the buckwheat is upwards of four feet high, as well where 

 it is fliaded by the mvlberry and apple trees, as where it has no 

 Jjiadc. — Where the fhade of the block oak falls, the colour is 

 lefs healthful ; but the fpots fhadowed in both parts of the 

 field by the chefnut trees, if mown at this time (becaufe now in 

 bloifom) would not, I am fatisfied, produce half the weight 

 that the fame fpace of ground would yield in any other part 

 of the field, not even excepting that fhaded by the apple and 

 mulberry trees, which is however inferior to the reft of the 

 field J this I attribute to the apple fliade (though it is too 

 much united with the mulberry to be diflinguifhed) fmce I 

 have before found, that the fhade of the apple tree was hurtful 

 to Indian corn. You will obferve that my experiments lafl 



