THE FARMERS' REGISTER. 



277 



On Lower Brandon and Church Pastures rarms, 

 part of the fields (or corn is of clover of the third 

 year, prazed, and part on wlieat stubble. Or; 

 Upper Brandon farm, it is wholly on wheat stub- 

 ble, except on the light 100 acre field, which 

 when for corn, and also the Upper Quarter shilt, 

 is in clover of the second year and best frrowth, 

 grazed late only in the second year, and not so 

 closely but that there is eiill a heavy cover of the 

 remaining clover to be ploughed under. 



Preparation for and cultivation of corn. — The 

 land for corn, of either kimt, is broken up wi h 

 good three-horse (or mule) ploughs, cutting from 

 6 to 8 inches deep. This is begun in November, 

 and each field usually finished early in winter. 

 The dry parts of the field are ploughed flush, (or 

 with a flat surface,) and wherever the least inclin- 

 ed to be wet, in ten-feet beds. The manure from 

 the farm-yard and stables is carried out after- 

 wards when convenient, and ploughed in vviih 

 two-horse ploughs. During the spring, the lime 

 is put out on part of the same field ; and if it be 

 a second application, it is put to the part ma- 

 nured. The balance of the land, not manured, 

 is harrowed in the spring, and once harroveing 

 generally serves to put the ground in good order. 



The flushed part is laid off for planting in 

 checks of 5 feet by 4^. The time in which the 

 planting is desired to be commenced and com- 

 pleted is between the 5lh and 25th of April. 

 From 6 to 8, and even 10 grains of corn planted 

 at each station. It is deemed economical to give 

 so much excess of seed, to have the fewer 

 missing places, and the less replanting. The 

 corn at proper time is thinned to two stalks to 

 the station. 



The first ploughing, given soon after the corn 

 is well up, is in the direction of the wider rows 

 (5 feet) and with two-horse mould-board ploughs 

 turning one furrow slice from each side of the 

 corn-row. The next ploughing is across the 

 preceding, and generally done with double-shovel 

 ploughs, (two-horse,) going twice to the interval 

 between each two corn rows, which breaks the 

 whole interval. Mr. Harrison ascribes much be- 

 nefit to his practice of giving early and frequent 

 ploughingg ; and would prefer to repeat the 

 ploughings as often as every 15 days, until the 

 tillage be completed. He usually gives four 

 ploughings (each time crossing the last,) with 

 the double-shovel ploughs ; the last of which 

 is begun immediately after the wheat harvest is 

 finished, and on the lightest and most forward 

 land sometimes before harvest. The weeding 

 with hand-hoes is commenced after the second 

 ploughing. A second hand-hoe weeding is given 

 to the foul spots only. 



On the land thrown into ten-feet beds, there are 

 two corn-rows planted on each bed 5 tfeet apart ; 

 and the first ploughing is given as above, by 

 turning off one furrow from each side of each 

 row. Next, the double-shovel ploughs are used 

 to finish the interval which is on the top of the 

 bed, (or including in it the crown of the ridge,) 

 and one-horse turning ploushs to plough the wa- 

 ter-furrow intervals, throwing the slices outward 

 from the water- furrow. The hand-hoes follow, 

 weeding the corn and putting a little earth to the 

 plants. These operations are repeated as want- 

 ed, and four or five such ploughings are given 

 in all. The blades (or leaves,) of the corn are 



pulled off" and the tops cut, as usual for fodder; 

 and no important injury to the grain is supposed 

 to be thereby caused ; care however is taken that 

 the operation is at the proper time — not early 

 enough (as supposed) to damage the corn, and 

 not so late that the Ibdder has become much in- 

 jured hy dpr^v. 



Upon ex(}ressing surprise at so much tillage 

 labor being used, in comparison with the usage of 

 many other successful farmers, Mr. Hurrison 

 readily admitted the greater cost of his corn cul- 

 ture ; but maintained that the additional labor 

 was well paid for in additional product. He had 

 tried the cheap modes of cultivation recommended, 

 and had even succeeded in makinsr what would 

 have been admitted to be very good corn with 

 legs than half his number of ploughings, and 

 without using hand-hoes at all for weeding. Ne- 

 vertheless, he is sure that more work would have 

 made a better crop, and that his now usual ad- 

 ditional labor would have been well compensated. 



Wheat. — The turning in of the clover (which 

 has been neither grazed nor mown,) is commen- 

 ced early in August, and sometimes late in July, 

 forming fifteen-leet beds with four-horse ploughs, 

 on the level surface ; and with three-horse ploughs 

 ploughing on ten-(eot beds- reversing the latter, 

 or making the crown of the new bed, by lapping 

 the first slices, upon the former water-furrow, and 

 making the new water-furrows under the places 

 of the old crowns. The ploughing in both cases 

 is from 6 to 8 inches deep, or as deep as the teams 

 can well draw at that usually dry season, and 

 turning under the fall growth of clover. Linked 

 or coupled square harrows, which accommodate 

 their cutting surface to the uneven and varying 

 face of the ground, are passed over soon after the 

 ploughs, to close the seams between the slices. 

 The like harrowingr is repeated occasionally after- 

 wards, as required (or the good condition of the 

 fallow, and even the double-shovel ploughs are 

 used on the most grassy spots. 



The seed wheat is selected carefully, thrashed 

 the earliest of the crop, and then put away dry. 

 The sowing is commenced about the 8th of Oc- 

 tober, The seed is prepared by being poured 

 slowly and gradually into a vessel of water, stir- 

 red, and all the floating grains, and all impurities 

 light enough to float, are skimmed off'. The wheat 

 is then drained, sprinkled with and rolled in fresh 

 slaked lime. This process is believed to be an 

 effectual safeguard against the smut. The sow- 

 ing is pushed on as fast as possible, beginning on 

 the corn-land. The corn, on the stalk, is cut off 

 at the ground, and set up in shocks, as usual, on 

 the wheat, rows being kept sown a little in ad- 

 vance of the general seeding, to set the shocks 

 upon. The corn-land is ploughed with two-horse 

 ploughs, the wheat then sown, and harrowed in, 

 by passing over the coupled harrows twice, or of- 

 tener if required. The usual quantity of seed to the 

 acre is 1| bushels, if of the purple straw wheat, and 

 nearly two bushels if of the larger grained turkey 

 wheat. On the clover fallow, rather more than 

 Ij bushels of purple straw is sown, or full 2 

 bushels of turkey wheat. The latter variety is 

 preferred for cold or stiff soils — but the purple 

 straw is better for all other soils, and in general. 

 The latter has been sown at Brandon and pre- 

 ferred for the last 15 years. 

 On this subject, Mr. Harrison has expressed 



