apart so as to prevent subsequent cultivation. Light and porous 

 loams, a little on the sandy side, are the best soils for mai/e it' well 

 tilled, but the crops will do well on all soils, except the stillc-t days, if 

 the- land is cither naturally rich, or artificially made so. Maize is a 

 gross feeder, and requires plenty of nutriment, which it absorbs 

 very rapidly. On light soils there is no better fertiliser than well- 

 rolled stable manure, but this is not always available, and artificial 

 fertilisers have to be resorted to. The manures should in all cases 

 be broadcasted over the land, as the maize plant, during the period 

 of its growth, sends out a great number of lateral surface roots in 

 search of food. Thorough tillage is essential to a heavy maize 

 crop. In sowing for grain the land should be deeply ploughed and 

 then harrowed, and marked off into rows and cross rows three feet 

 apart. At the intersections three or four seeds are planted and 

 well covered, about half to two inches deep. There are numerous 

 machines made for planting, which do the work expeditiously, and 

 save time and labor where a large area has to be sown. The sow- 

 ing should not take place until spring, when danger of severe frost 

 is over. The pickling of maize seed prior to sowing has been 

 described in Part II. of the GUIDE, and it is not an uncommon 

 practice to soak the seed for twenty-four hours before planting. 

 The first hoeing should be given when the thinning out 

 is done that is, when the plants are about two inches 

 high, and easily handled. Subsequent cultivation should be 

 as frequent as possible, especially in the drier districts, so 

 as to retain as much moisture in the soil as possible. 

 Cultivation should not be too deep, otherwise the chief feeding 

 roots of the plants will be destroyed. With a view to securing the 

 best seed for next season, while the crop is still standing in the 

 field, just before the gathering, the farmer should select and mark 

 the earliest ripened and best formed ears, so that they may be 

 distinguished at harvesting and put on one side for seed. The crop 

 should be harvested either by cutting the tops when the tassel 

 begins to grow dry, using the tops for fodder, or cutting the plant 

 altogether when the stalk has begun to ripen. The stalks should 

 be tied in bundles and stooked, and when dry removed to the barn. 

 The husking and shelling may be done as required, and when the 

 most favourable opportunity presents itself. There are many 

 varieties of maize in the market, and seed should be selected to suit 

 the district in the matter of ripening. For green fodder Gobbets' 

 corn or ninety day is the best perhaps. 



BUCKWHEAT. Flour made from the grain of this plant is univer- 

 sally used in the United States for cakes and in general cookery. The 

 plant itself is chiefly useful as a catch crop for growing on poor soils, 

 and ploughing in as green manure. The plant does best on light soils, 

 and requires a moderate amount of moisture. As a green manure 

 it is less valuable than the clovers, but will grow where these plants 

 will not. The seed may be sown on ploughed ground in the spring, 



