314 EXPERIMENTS ON Part IH. 



*• from weeds, efpecially the firft fummer ; for when the plants 

 " have fpread fo as to cover the furface of the ground, the weeds 

 ** will not fo readily grow between them. The fecond year after 

 " fowing, the plants will flioot up heads, v/hich will be fit to cut 

 "about the beginning of Auguft; at which time they fhould be 

 ■~^" cut and tied up in bunches, fetting them in the fun, if the 

 " weather be fair ; but if not, they mdft be fet in rooms to dry 

 •' thern. The common produce is about an hundred and fixty 

 *' bundles or ftaves upon an acre, which are fold for about one 

 " fhilling a flave." 



M. Duhamel relates, that a friend of his had exceeding large car- 

 rots, by planting young carrots in a kitchen-garden, a foot afunder, 

 Thofe which were fown thicker, remained fmall and flinted. Thefe 

 large carrots were tender and of a good tafte. 



From this, and fome other experiments of the fame kind, he 

 draws the following conclufions. i. That plants extend their roots 

 farther than is generally imagined. 2. That it is proper to give each 

 plant fufficient room to extend its roots in fearch of its neccffary 

 food : and 3. That plants which grow too thick, hurt one another, 

 and yield but fmall produdtions. 



In 1755, M. Duhamel himfelf fowed a piece of ground with car- 

 rot, beet, and fcorzonera feed, and planted the remainder of it with 

 young cabbages. All thefe plants were hoed, according to the 

 praftice of the new hufbandry, and not watered at all. The cab- 

 bages were very fine, and the carrots, beet-roots, and fcorzoneras, 

 the fineft that had ever been feen. 



In 1756 he fowed the fame ground again, as before, and with 

 the like fuccefs ; excepting that the beets and carrots were too thin, 

 becaufe fome of the feeds did not grow. The cabbages were ex- 

 ceeding fine ; and kidney beans, which he added this year, came ta 

 great perfeftion. 



M. Barbuat, M. D. towards the latter end of Auguft, 1755, 

 planted winter cabbages two feet afunder, and fet three leeks between 

 each cabbage. He ftirred the ground about them three times, at the 

 diftance of fix weeks between each ftirring. They became larger and 

 better tafted, than thofe that were cultivated in the common way. 



In February, he fowed onions, which having been negledled till 

 towards the middle of May, were moft of them choaked with 

 weeds. He ordered thefe weeds to be pulled up, and, contrary to 

 the advice of all the gardeners near him, gave his onions, which 



were 



