1930] 



FARMERS' RJEGISTER 



114 



crops — fiini liint nearly all the improvement actu- 

 ally gained was apparent as soon as marled land 

 only was soitm in wheat. As each field came un- 

 der Its second rotation, there was always more or 

 less oC loss sustained from the disease caused by 

 my improper heavy dressings. 



One circumstance should be stated, as it served 

 to make the apparent average increase of crops 

 greater than the truth — and another, that served 

 to lessen it. In 1824, "25, and '26, a field of 70 

 acres of the best soil was one half in wheat on 

 fallow every year — which gave a crop from 35 

 acres each year, instead oi' from only half that 

 amount, which would have been ti-om the regular 

 four-shift rotation. The other circumstance was 

 the clearing and bringing into cultivation more 

 than 100 acres of land, which, before marling, 

 would certainly not have averaged 6 bushels ol" 

 wheat to the acre; and of course this served to 

 lessen apparently the general average, after it was 

 raised to 10 bushels. The reclaimed marsh, be- 

 fore referred to, never bore wheat, and therelbre 

 has not afiected these estimates. 



The product of one poor field of 135 arable acres 

 happened to be measured and set down separately, 

 Ibr two crops of corn, before marling. In 1814, it 

 brought 1125 bushels, or 8 J to the acre. In ISl?, 

 with the advantage of a good season, it brought 

 1235 bushels, or 9 and a small fraction to the acre, 

 in 1S25 my whole crop wason 70 acres of this field, 

 (supposed to be a fair average of the whole-,) and 

 the first cultivation after its being marled. The 

 produce was 1254 bushels, \ery nearly 18 bushels 

 the acre. Some farm-yard manure had been giv- 

 en to this crop — and rather more to each of the 

 two former. But no manure put on that land, be- 

 fore marling, had shown any effect longer than a 

 sinojle course of crops, il" so long. 



Since this table was prepared, and the forego- 

 ing estin\ates and observations written, (to 1826,) 

 8 more crops have been made. Not having paid 

 the same personal attention to my business lor 

 the greater part of this time, nor continued to 

 make written memoranda of the operations of the 

 farm, I cannot extend the table of crops accu- 

 rately to this time, and can only state general and 

 important results. 



The wheat crops of 1827, 28, 29, as well as 

 the two last preceding those years, were all very 

 bad, and generally on account of rust, which 

 seemed to have become so regular and destructive 

 in its visitations, that I began to think that a 

 change of climate had taken place, which requir- 

 ed that wheat should be abandoned as a crop in 

 lower Virginia. JVlost persons, on poor land, be- 

 tween James River and Carolina, gave up the 

 crop entirely. My own sowing was on this ac- 

 count reduced in extent by 30 or 40 acres a year, 

 of the richest land, which was given up to the then 

 newly adopted crop of cotton. This crop was 

 commenced on 48 acres in 1825, increased to 96 

 by 1829, was reduced greatly in extent in 1830, 

 and then abandoned for ever. My crops of cot- 

 ton were very good, and peculiar benefits were 

 obtained from the powers of marl in warming the 

 soil, and hastening the maturing of the crop. But 

 my best land, wherever it might lie, was taken for 

 cotton — and all my liirm-yard and stable manure 

 was given to it. The land being kept year after 

 year in that crop, and under the most perfect and 



incessant tillage, was caused to be washed most 

 destructively by every heavy ram; so that, with 

 washing and exhaustion together, all the manure 

 did not prevent the best land being actually redu- 

 ced in productiveness in these five years. This 

 culture had also cut up and almost destroyed the 

 best fields for other crops; and not only took their 

 best portions for cotton, but also robbed the other 

 and poorer parts of all share of the manure. It is 

 therelbre not to be wondered at, that the wheat 

 crops should have been much dimin'shed, even 

 without the aid of so many successive bad sea- 

 sons. In 1831, the crop of wheat generally was 

 remarkably good ; and of mine, 2401 bushels were 

 measured, and llilly one hundred more had been 

 lost by sj)routing in the field during the long- 

 est spell of wet weather, about the close of 

 harvest, ever before known at that time of year. 

 In 1835, the crop of corn, on one of the lourregu- 

 lar shiiis, amounted to more than 4000 bushels. 

 At this time, (1834) the arable land has been 

 increased to about 770 acres, by new clearings of 

 wood-land, all of whch was of acid poor soil, the 

 first cultivation of which, even after marling, 

 served to reduce the previous general average pro- 

 duct of wheat. Clover, which the cotton-culture 

 excluded from the best soil, has since been sown 

 over nearly the whole farm, and grows on every 

 field, with more or less vigor, according to the 

 condition of the land. This has been partially 

 grazed, and the best parts mowed for the last few 

 years. Farm-yard and other putrescent manures, 

 which were almost entirely neglected while the 

 marling was most on hand, have since been col- 

 lected and applied much more abundantly, than 

 at any former time, though still less so than ought 

 to be done. With the operation of all these cir- 

 cumstances, there were others which served to 

 have counteracting effects. The withdrawal of 

 my personal attention from my fiirm, (owing, at 

 first, to long-continued ill health,) the removal to 

 another place of residence — and the change of 

 pursuits, and of habits growing out of these and 

 other circumstances — all concurred to change a 

 general system of farm-management, which had 

 been always imperfect, slovenly, and wasteful, to 

 what was much worse in every respect. It is, 

 therefore, not strange, that improvement has not 

 kept on with the rapidity with whichit formerly ad- 

 vanced, notwithstandmg the many causes which 

 operated even then, to retard its progress. What- 

 ever I have been enabled to perform by the only 

 means for improvement, in which zeal and the 

 deep interest felt, made me highly successful, 

 may be done much better, and with much greater 

 profit, by the many who are better economists and 

 better operatives; or by many others, who, though 

 perhaps exercising no more skill and economy, 

 have greater facilities for applying calcareous ma- 

 nures, and soils more favorable to receive such im- 

 provement. It is believed that the present ave- 

 rage product (1834) of the arable land of the Cog- 

 gins' Point farm, (excluding all waste spots) in 

 corn, would be fi-om 20 to 25 bushels to the acre, 

 in average seasons, and with good cultivation — 

 and in wheat after corn, 9 to 10 bushels. Wheat 

 on clover, of course would be far more productive, 

 but to what extent, 1 will not presume to offer an 

 estimate, as this system is but now commencing 

 as a part of the general rotation. 



