772 FARMERS' REGISTER— APPLICATION OF LIQUID MANURE— RAPE. 



Bide, through whicli the manure is received from 

 the curt by means of a slioot or trough, and at 

 one end an opening is Iclt to bring it up again, by 

 means of a teniporarj' pump, which delivers it 

 cither into carts or tonneaus.* 



In tills manner it is carried to the field, and one 

 or other luode adopted, according to tlie distance. 

 Where the cart plies, the manure is carried in a 

 great sheet called a voile, closed at the corners by 

 running strings, and secured to the four uprights 

 of the cart: two men, standing one on each side 

 ol" tlie cart, scatter it with hollow shovels upon 

 tlic rolled ground — or where the tonneaus are made 

 use of, each is carried by two men with poles, and 

 set down at equal intervals across the field in the 

 line of the rolling. There are two sets of vessels, 

 which enable the men, who deposite the loaded 

 ones, to bring back the others empty. One man 

 to each vessel, with a scoop, or rather a kind of 

 bowl with a long handle, spreads the manure, so 

 as to cover a certain space; and thus, by preserv- 

 ing the intervals correctly, they can precisely 

 guage the quantity for a given extent of surface. 

 For the flax crop they are profuse, and of this li- 

 quid mixture in this part of the country they usu- 

 ally allow 400 hectolitres (in which 3000 rape- 

 cakes have been dissolved,) to the bonnier, which 

 is at the rate of 2480 gallons beer measure to the 

 Engli.sli acre. As a similarity of practice prevails 

 In that part of No. III. which resembles this in 

 soil, we shall proceed to that district. 



DIVISION NO. III. 



Boundaries, Soil, general Produce, and notations. 



This division is bounded on the north by Win- 

 pie, St. Eloy and llulste; on the east by the river 

 Lys to Courtraj^; on the south by French Flanders, 

 and on the west by a line to the east of Rous- 

 eelaer and Zandvoorde. Its chief places are 

 Courtray, Menin, Wervike, and Dadizeele. 



The soil of the southern part of this division is 

 very nearly of the same quality as that of the for- 

 mer; but the remaining part is more sandy. It is 

 a division, however, in great repute, as to its cul- 

 tivation: its chief produce, wheat, flax, rye, pota- 

 toes, oats, and rape-seed. Its secondary produce, 

 buck-wheat, turnips, clover. Its natural meadows, 

 on the banks of the river, yield a fine quality of 

 hay. The country is here more open; the farms 

 larger, the plantations fewer; sufficient, however, 

 for ornament and utility. 



On the eastern side of this division is the farm 

 of Vollandre, belonging to a man of the name of 

 Bogaert, of about 200 English acres in extent, 

 which being on a great scale for Flanders, is wor- 

 thy of notice, and especially as marking the gen- 

 eral practice of that quarter. This beautiful area 

 of cultivation is laid out as to its crops, in parallel 

 lines, perpendicular to a road without fence, which 

 pervades the entire, and commands both sides for 

 all farming purposes. The contour is that of a 

 rich garden, the effect of industry and manure; for 

 the soil is such as, in our countries, we should hold 

 in disesteem, viz. a light-grey loam strongly im- 

 pregnated with sand; yet the following crops are 

 produced from it in the best perfection: 



1. Rape, with urine and rape-cake. 



* The tonneau resembles a beer barrel, and contains 

 176 litres, about .38 gallons English. 



2. Wheat or rye, with dung, 



3. Rye and clover, without manure, 



4. Clover, with ashes, 



5. Wheat, with urine, 



6. Turnips, with dung and urine, 



7. Oats, without manure, 



8. Flax with abundant manure; 



viz. bruised rape-cake 5000 cakes to the bonnier, 

 about 1 ton 6| cwt. to the English acre, or of li- 

 quid manure, (denominated court graisse,J 400 

 hectolitres to the bonnier (as in No. III.,) about 

 2480 gallons to the English acre. 



Culture and advantages of Rape. 



Rape-seed is an object of such agricultural mo- 

 ment in Flanders, and so well adapted to the gen- 

 erality of the soil of Ireland, (particularly to those 

 parts which are as yet unreclaimed, but which, 

 through the medium of this valuable seed, might 

 be converted with profit, into a state of cultivation 

 and fertility,) that it was satisfactory to learn, and 

 from so good a practical authority as this farmer, 

 the precise value of his crop at the time of our 

 conversation. His produce was 40 sacks, or 50 

 hectolitres per bonnier, which is 14f hectolitres, or 

 about five quarters to the English acre. His crop 

 sold by the sack for 39 francs, which would be 

 about the rate of £ 18 10s. per English acre at 

 par. 



Exclusive of the manure, viz. 2000 rape-cakes 

 and sixty-four carts of liquid manure to the bon- 

 nier, which is estimated at £19 being about £5 

 10s, by the English acre, the remaining cost is 

 that of two ploughings and about 80 men employ- 

 ed in manuring, transplanting, Aveeding, earthing, 

 pulling, and thrashing, the crop; which by the 

 English acre, may altogether be estimated at 

 about £ 1 12s. The plants are valued at 10s., eo 

 the account would stand thus: 



£. s. d. 

 Gross amount of rape-seed, per English 



acre, - - - 18 10 



£ s. d. 

 Manure, in value, - 6 10 



Ploughing, and labor, - 1 12 



Rape plants, - - 10 



£7 12 



Profit* per English acre. 



7 12 

 £10 18 



* It is well that the culture of this plant is beginning 

 to extend itself in Ireland, and that ample encourage- 

 ment is exhibited upon the farm of Mr. Samuel Gar- 

 nett, nearKells, in the county of Meath, reclaimed by 

 his skill and industry from an absolute marsh, and with- 

 out any manure except the surface ashes, producing the 

 most luxuriant crops. His first essay, of about eight 

 acres, yielded 17 barrels per acre, and sold at 41s. per 

 barrel, making £34 17s. per Irish acre. In the last 

 autumn he prepared 38 acres of transplanted rape, 

 which promised still better than that of the former year, 

 but was not so productive, and he has now upon the 

 same farm 45 acres for the ensuing crop, sown broad- 

 cast, and 3 feet in height in most parts of it, in the 

 month of November. 



This reclaimed marsh had been from time immemo- 

 rial inundated, except from the summer months, when 

 it was merely applicable to horses and young cattle. 

 By taking the proper levels, and sinking the river at a 



