404 



F A 11 M E K S ' K E G I S T E 11, 



[No. 7 



fkrmentntion. One or (wo mon (accorflinij to the 

 number of teams employed, and distance fioin I he 

 yards) sliould remain constantly at the heaps while 

 the teams are at work, on purpose to spread and 

 level the dung regularly, so as to render the ascent 

 easy for the succeeding teams -as they come wilh 

 their load.?. 



if The dung has not been previously mixed in 

 the J'ards, it should be so in drawing to the heaps, 

 by means ol' taking up a (ew loads irom one yard, 

 iHid Ihen a lew Irom another, allernately, and even 

 from the same yard the loads of dung should be 

 iaken irom different parts alternalely, by reason 

 ihat the dung is not of equal quality, nor made 

 \vilh the same regularity, in all parts ot"the yard. 



The coal ashes, road scrapings, and all other 

 crdlections o! manure about the (iirm honse, should 

 :;;;..) be carried to the dung heaps in the fields; and 

 wiien the heaps are raised as high as convenient 

 /ut the horses to draw up, several loads should 

 be shot up at the ends of the heaps, lor the pur- 

 pose of making them up to the square of the ccn- 

 ue: the whole heaps should then be completely 

 oovsred with the marl and clay, or soM previously 

 eolkctcd in rows by the sides of the heaps; and 

 if there should not have been a sufficient quantity 

 of material collected in the first instance, more 

 should be got ready without loss of time, so as to 

 eli'ectually enclose the the dung heaps in crusts, 

 and they are thencelbrth denominated pies. The 

 dung will be preserved in the i)ies in a very per- 

 fect state, with little or no deterioration or diminu- 

 tion without lermentation,and vviihout loss by ex- 

 halation or evaporation. The pies should reitiinn 

 in this state until within ten days or a fortni^rht 

 of the time the manure will be wanted for the 

 turnij) ground, when they should be turned care- 

 fully over, and the crust, top, bottom, and sides in- 

 timately mixed up with the dung: when the turn- 

 ing is completed, immediately ploutrh several fur- 

 rows of the natural soil all round the heaps, and 

 with the loose earth ploughed up, aL'ain coat the 

 heaps all over; the pies willihen take a irentle fer- 

 mentation; the earth intermixed wilh and cover- 

 ing the dung will absorb the juices and gasses of 

 the dung, and the compost come out in a fine stale 

 of preparation for using on the turnip land. 



When turnips are sown in the NonhumberlaiHl 

 fidge system, the drills should be split open, the 

 dung taken from the pies, and spread in the rows, 

 then covered up, and the seed sown immediately 

 HI the tresh earth— the whole operation should, "if 

 possible, be completed in the same day. when 

 every ridge or drill forms a little hot-bed, to en- 

 i^ouragy the vegetation of the plants and force 

 them speedily out of the reach of the turnip flies 

 When dung is taken out of the vards late in the 

 spmg, or only a short time before "it is wanted for 

 the turnip ground, the preparation should in some 

 degree (litter from the loregoing, because ol the 

 pies or compost heaps having lees time for incorpo- 

 rating. 1 recommend the following (irocess for 

 preparing dung late in the spring. °First let the 

 bottoms and side heaps ofeanh'be provided in 

 the same manner as lor the winter heaps, but the 

 dung should not be carted upon the heaps' to com- 

 press them, and prevent fermentation as in winter- 

 on the contrary, the dung should be thrown up 

 hghtly with the fork, upon the bottoms, and the 

 pide heaps of earth mixed intimately alon.T wilh 

 the dung, which answers the double purpose of 



reducing the straw part of the dimg to a proper 

 st;it(! for applying to the land, and prevents an ex- 

 cess of li'rmcnialion in the centre of the heaps. 

 When the heaps are raised sufficiently high, and 

 extended to cover the squares of the bottoms pre- 

 pared, the natural soil of the field should be plouLf li- 

 ed up all round the heaps, r.nd thrown upon them, 

 in the manner heretofore directed; the pies will' 

 then take a gentle fermentation, and soon be ready 

 lor use. The time recjuired fi)r preparing the ma- 

 nure in this maimer must depend upon the stremilh 

 of the dung, and the quantity of the clay or mari 

 thrown up along with it. Experience will soon [loint 

 out the proper (luantiiy of marl to be applied, and 

 the necessary time for the j)ies to remaia belbre 

 they are used. Turf ti;rned up for a year preceding, 

 on wastes by the sides of roads, luakes excellent 

 pie meal. Good compost heaps ap|)lied to land 

 have I he cti'ect of renovaling soils worn out by 

 arable culture and stimulating manures. 



Objections (on the score of expense) will be 

 raised against the system I have recommended, 

 but when it is considered that the greater part of 

 the additional expense is in manual labor, surely 

 that objection should have no weight in the scale, 

 when weiirhed in balance against the ultimate 

 benefit to the farmer, and the hijihly creditable 

 method of employing the superabundance of la- 

 borers, or excess of population wiih which the 

 landed interest is at present burthened; in preler- 

 enc^ to the customary metlioil of su[iporting the 

 extra laborers and their fimilies as paupers, or 

 which is much the same thing, employing such 

 laborers in what is called re[)airing the road's, that 

 is (according to the common [iraciice) throwing 

 the dirt from the sides into the centre, and there- 

 by creating a job lor some other persons to throw 

 the dirt out again. 



This remark leads me to make a few observa- 

 tions on the subject of road making, a subject 

 thar although it forms an integral and |)rincipai 

 part of rural economy, is but seldom much attend- 

 ed to by those whose interests are most intimately 

 concerned in havinir o-ood roads. 



In a country like Norl()lk, where the soil is gene- 

 rally liirht and dry, and good materials frequently 

 plentiful, much less expense, attention, or ingenu- 

 ity is required to kee[) roads in good order, than in 

 districts less favorably circumstanced, and the 

 greater part of the roads in Norfolk are kept in good 

 order; but there are, I am sorry to say, (I speak 

 feelingly) soinc very striking exceptions to the ge- 

 neral rule. 



The Ibiiowing are prevailing errors in the first 

 formation of roads, viz., omitting to underdrain 

 sprinay lands, or retentive subsoils, not carrying 

 off (by siiie drains) the surliiice water arising for 

 the adjoining lands through which the roads pass, 

 and in neiilecting the inclined pla.ie, or lull from 

 the water length-ways, of the road. 



Some eminent scientific men have differed in 

 opinion respecting the form of roads, viz., whe- 

 ther a concave or convex Ibrm is most proper, and 

 both opinions inay be supported by well-founded 

 arguments. The vestiges of the Roman roads 

 left in this country indicate that that wise people 

 formed their roads upon the inclined plane and 

 concave principle. In modern times the celebrated 

 Bakewell, of Dishley, in Leicestershire, (whose 

 memory will long be revered by aiiriculturists and 

 breeders of farm stock,) was a great advocate for 



