156 On I'rench Floughmg for Indian Corn^ ^e, 



make a small cavity in the soil in which three grains 

 are deposited, the cavity should not be made very deep 

 as the trench ploughing will cover it effectually. 



The planted ground must be looked over afterwards, 

 to see if any of the seed is left uncovered, and some 

 time before the corn is up, the intervals between the 

 rows should be ploughed, or at least one furrow on 

 each side of every row. 



The usual course of crops in this neighbourhood is, 

 1st. Indian corn, 2nd. oats or barley, 3rd. wheat or 

 rye, 4th. clover. — My routine is 1st. wheat, 2nd. rye 

 and buckwheat soxvn together, 3rd. Indian corn, 4th. 

 barley or oats, with manure, 5th. clover or grass seeds, 

 or both. I generally give the wheat two ploughings, 

 especially if there is any grass among the clover. I 

 have sown part of my wheat stubble with rye and buck- 

 wheat, (as soon as can conveniently be done after har- 

 vest,) and part with rye alone, at the usual time of sow- 

 ing that grain, and I thought the rye and buckwheat 

 produced a greater quantity than the rye sown alone, 

 and it is a great saving of labour. — Besides, a good 

 quantity of wheat is gained mixed with rye, from the 

 stubble of the preceding year. The proportion of seed 

 I use is one bushel of rye and half a bushel of buck- 

 wheat. The buckwheat may be cut at the usual time 

 without any injury to the rye. 



I attribute my having as good crops of corn as any 

 of my neighbours, solely to trench ploughing. When 

 the ground has borne three crops before, the surface of 

 the soil may well be exhausted. The trench plough 

 brings a substratum of fresh soil to the roots of the corn, 

 and gives the small fibres more liberty to expand. I 



