EFFECT UPON TURNIPS, AND THE QUALITY OF THE CROP. 339 



30i cwt. when dressed with bones and wood ashes, each 15 bushels. 

 31 cwt. when dressed with 1 cwt. of nitrate of soda, drilled in. 

 35 cwt. when seed and nitrate were both broad-cast. 

 38 cwt. when the seed was drilled and the nitrate broad-cast. 



On the other hand, Lord Zetland thought it did no good to turnips ; 

 Mr. Vansittart, that on strong land well dunged it did harm ; and the 

 Messrs. Drewitt, that on their dry rubbly chalk it had no effect on this 

 crop, though it improved in a remarkable degree the succeeding crop 

 of barley. 



We are obviously in want of more numerous and better observations, 

 especially in regard to turnips. The above discordancies will either 

 vanish when we obtain a 2 larger collection of results, or they will find an 

 exjolanation in the more accurate observations we may expect to obtain 

 in regard to the climate, soil, and geological position of the locality in 

 which each experiment is made. Those practical men who are really 

 desirous of aiding the progress of scientific agriculture, — by which pro- 

 gress not only the national welfare, but their own individual interests 

 also are likely to be promoted, — will do more towards this end by one 

 single experiment in which weights and measures are carefully deter- 

 mined, and the soil, the climate, the geological position and the lie of 

 the land, accurately described, than by any number of mere general 

 statements, such as those I have here laid before you in regard to the 

 effect of the nitrates upon the turnip crop. 



c. Effect of the nitrates on the quality of the crop. — This I have 

 already in some measure alluded to. It so affects the grass and clover 

 as to make it more relished by the cattle. This is usually expressed 

 by saying that the crop is sweeter, but since cattle are known to be fond 

 of saline substances, it may be that the grasses are, by these salts, only 

 rendered more savoury. It generally also gives a grain (of wheat) 

 of an inferior quality— ^which has a thicker skin, and yields more bran. 

 This may possibly arise from its having been generally allowed to ripen 

 too long. [See Mr. John Hannam's valuable experiments on the 

 orer- ripening of corn in the Quarterly Journal of Agriculture.] A 

 question still undetermined is, whether the flour of nitrated corn is more 

 nutritive than that obtained from corn which has been undressed. 



It is generally supposed that those samples of flour which contain the 

 most gluten are also the most nutritive. But hitherto the only experi • 

 ments which have been made with the view of determining the relative 

 quantities of gluten in samples of grain from the same field, one por- 

 tion of which had been nitrated, and the other not, are, one made by 

 Mr. Daubeny, and one reported by Mr. Hyett, to the latter of which 1 

 have already had occasion, for another purpose, to direct your attention. 

 [See note, p. 167.] 



In these experiments the flour of the several wheats gave — 



In Dr. Daubeny 's In Mr. Hyett'ft 



Experiment. Experiment. 



Nitrated 15 per cent, of gluten 23^ per cent. 



CJnnitrated 13 per cent, of gluten 19 per cent. 



Excess of gluten in the nitrated, 2 per cent. 4^ per cent. 



X5 



