Chap. I. BY M. ROUSSEL. 135 



part of the whole; and that from a field which was fowed in 

 rows for the firft time, and of which three quarters were not 

 dunked at all : whilfl the other, with which it is compared, 

 hadbeen folded all over, and, for the year, produced a very plen- 

 tiful crop. 



M. Duhamel relates feveral other experiments, which were 

 communicated to him by difJ>rent perfons, dunng the puWica- 

 tion of his work: but as they contain nothing efTentially dif- 

 ferent from thofe we have already given, and, like then-,, v/ere 

 made only on fmall pieces of ground, we think it need!- Is to 

 mention them here. We {hall therefore proceed to the judicious 

 and more extenfive experiments of M. de Chateau-vieux, after 

 extradling a few pailages from the writings of one of our own 

 countrymen, in confirmation of the advantages of the new huf- 

 bandry. 



" Deep plowing, (fays Mr. Miller, in his Gardeners Dictionary,) 

 where the ftaple of the ground is deep enough to admit of it, will 

 be of great fervice to corn : for the fmall fibres of the roots, which 

 are the mouths that fupply the nouriihment, extend themfelves very 

 deep into the ground. I have traced many of them upwards of three 

 feet, and believe they fpread much farther where the ground is 

 light : therefore it is of great advantage to the crop to have the 

 ground ftirred and loofened to a proper depth : for by fo doing, the 

 roots will find a fupply of pafture for the nourifhment and augmen- 

 tation of the ears, at the time they are forming, when it is moft 

 required : for if the ground is plowed fhallow, the roots will have 

 extended themfelves to that depth by the fpringj fo that when 

 the nourifhment is wanted to fupply the flalks, the roots are 

 flinted by the hardnefs of the foil, which they cannot penetrate. 

 When this is the cafe, the colour of the blade is frequently 

 feen to change in April, and feldom recovers its verdure again: 

 and when this happens, the ftalks are always weakened in pro- 

 portion to the decay of the blade : for it is well known from 

 long experience, that the leaves or blades of corn are necelTary to 

 draw in nourifhment from the air and dews, for the increale of the 

 ftalk and ear. 



" I have obferved, adds he, that, in general, the farmers fow more 

 than double the quantity of corn on their lands than is neceffary : 

 therefore there is a great wafle of grain, which, in fcarce years, 



amounts 



