262 EXPERIMENTS ON WHEAT/ --i^irtir. 



'* theie beds up for a new crop, and fovved them, part with jNiaflin 

 *' corn, and part with wheat. 



. " The lummer of 1754 was fo dry, that I deferred plowing the 

 " back of the beds which had borne their crops, till the end of 

 *' autumn. This was attended with thefe two inconveniencies : firft, 

 " that the intermediate earth,which had been well pulverifed, being 

 " no longer fupported as before, flipt away from under the drill, 

 " and fpread to the right and left; by which means the plants had 

 " lefs depth of good mould left, and I loft part of the advantage I 

 ** hoped for from this culture. The other inconvenience was, that 

 " the beds being no longer fo high raifed as they (Iiould have been, 

 '*' the firfl plowing in autumn covered their outmoft rows in feveral 

 " places : a lofs, by fo much the more confiderable, as the rows fo 

 " buried would, by their fituation, have otherwife been the finefl: of 

 " all. I certainly under-rate it in valuing it at only a tenth part of 

 " the crop. 



" As Maflin is a much quicker grower than wheat, and being 

 " uncertain whether it would do without dung -, out of 18 beds, I 

 " dunged 12, but very llightly ; juft as I Ihould have dunged the 

 " third part of this ground, if I had intended to fow it in the broad- 

 " call-way. 



" Tfowed it on the 4th and 5th of Odober, 1754, with two 

 " turns of the drill-plough, and very thick, by reafon of the im- 

 " perfection of my drill, and becaufe the feafon was already fome- 

 •* what advanced. A third more feed was fowed this year than the 

 •* laft, viz. 18 of our meafares. 



<* The plants rofe well, the rows looked very thick and well 

 " filled, except thofe which were hurt by the firft autumn plowing, 

 '* and by cattle which broke in upon the ground, and did a deal of 

 *' damage. 



•* The plants in the part which had been dunged, were very fine 

 " all the winter. In the beginning of April they grew with furpfi- 

 *' fing vigour, and were as beautiful as could poffibly be in May and 

 " June. They were fo tall, that they hid my plough and horfes, and 

 " feemed to promife three times more than the other plants where 

 " the ground had not been dunged. Thefe lafl grew more flowly j 

 " but jufl before harveft, they pufhed ftrongly ; and if their ftraw 

 •♦ was not fo long or fo thick as that of the former, there was fcarce 

 " any difference in the length of the ears ; and the difference of the 

 ** produce was but one fourth in favour of the dunged plants. 



" Both 



