48 SKETCHES OF RURAL AFFAIRS. 



for in light soils it is sometimes found, that over- 

 harrowing brings the seed up to the surface again. 



The rough appearance of the land in winter often 

 surprises the ignorant, who are disposed to wonder, that 

 a small and delicate grain should be able to thrive while 

 buried beneath the clods. But this roughness, instead 

 of being injurious, is actually serviceable to the young 

 plants, which spring up under the shelter of the clods, 

 and are protected by them from wind and frost. The 

 effect of frost is to make the soil crumble to pieces, and 

 in this way it at length acts on these clods, which gra- 

 dually moulder and fall apart, deepening the soil around 

 the young plants, and thus conferring a second benefit 

 upon them. Therefore, to harrow the land until there 

 were scarcely any clods left, would be a great mistake 

 in this case. Another danger from over-harrowing is, 

 that, "whenever the land is harrowed as fine as meal 

 with autumn wheat, the rain never fails to batter its 

 surface into a crust, and the frost heaves it up in spring 

 like fermented dough, and this action raising the plants 

 along with the soil, they are exposed on the surface 

 after the frozen earth has subsided, on being thawed in 

 the sunshine. This can only happen, however, when 

 a considerable quantity of moisture exists under the 

 surface." 



Every one knows that the wheat crop is very much 

 affected by the state of the weather during winter. An 

 early fail of snow is generally a great benefit to it, 

 wrapping it as in a mantle, and preventing the tem- 

 perature of the soil from sinking below freezing ; but a 

 late fall of snow, following a mild and open season, is 

 very injurious, especially if it lies long on the ground. 

 The wheat plants having then attained some size, are, 

 perhaps, pressed down, and unable to rise again, or they 

 are actually destroyed and made rotten by it. Some- 

 times when wheat has escaped all other dangers, it is 

 seriously injured by the sharp frosts of early spring, 

 which frequently follow very bright, sunny days 



