80 



of the seed, which is of great consequence : the drills * 

 were made at one foot asunder. He then rolled the ground 

 with a heavy roller, drawn by two horses : when the rows 

 appeared, he run the Dutch hoe betwixt the rows, and 

 hand-weeded the rows, leaving the plants four inches 

 asunder : in about three weeks after he weeded a second 

 time, and kept them very clean. In October, he cut off 

 the tops with a scythe, and raised the carrots by plough- 

 ing the ground in the ordinary way, as many as he want- 

 ed ; but where the ground was dry, he let them remain 

 with their tops on, to guard them from the frost, and rai- 

 sed them as he had occasion : frost destroys them if left 

 in wet ground during the winter ; but in dry ground they 

 keep best tilt the spring, when they begin to grow, and 

 should be raised in March. He sowed about 7lb. of seed f 

 per acre, and they yielded a profit equal to wheat, 

 and improved the ground till it was absolutely too rich 

 for carrots, and he had the best crops of barley and wheat 

 after, that could be imagined : one acre produced nineteen 

 bolls and a half of wheat, and was very indifferent ground 

 before it was improved by the cultivation of carrots. He 

 sold the spot, which was at Burnhead and Stonehouse, 

 near Liber ton, twelve years ago, at more than double the 

 price he paid for it, without any improvements, except 

 by cultivating carrots upon it ; on an average he had about 







* Drilling has been tried in Suffolk, but did not succeed. 

 Here is no mention of steeping the seed, which is found very 

 important in Suffolk. 



f Never more than 5 lh. of seed sown in Suffolk broad- 

 cast by the best farmers ; the seed being good, that is to say 

 new. 



