1836.] 



FARMERS' REGISTER. 



157 



goes on after corn is cut clown in a green state, 

 and that the color of the grains is never injured 

 thereby, though sometimes, ti-om being bound to- 

 gether, and excluded h'om light and air when in a 

 green state. Practical iarmers, who are gifted 

 ■with observation, must frequently have witnessed 

 a whole district apparonily unfit for the sickle, be- 

 come, in the course of four or five days, perfectly 

 dead ripe through the agency of" good weatlier. 

 Surely such corn might have been reaped with 

 safety at the commencement of'so rapid a change. 



All who have reaped corn when it was com- 

 pletely ripened, and those who have superintended 

 the reaping of" it, must be well aware that many 

 of the best grains drop out in handling the corn 

 during the cutting process, as well as in the after 

 operations, which is entirely owing to the open- 

 nesg of the chart'; that it is ditHcult, if not impos- 

 sible, to prevent many stalks and ears from falling 

 to the ground and beinglost, which isowingto the 

 sfilT sapless state of the straw ; and the finer the 

 quality of the grain, the greater the loss fiom 

 these two circumstances. Indeed, after an early 

 harvest, such as that of 1821 or 1822, the loss be- 

 came manifest from the grains vegetating upon 

 the ground. The grains of completely ripened 

 wheat and potato-oats are extremely apt to drop 

 out; and the ears and stalks of ripe barley are 

 most liable to be lost in cutting ; and probably the 

 late varieties of oats suffer least from being allowed 

 to stand until perfectly ripe. But corn of every 

 description suffers a diminution of produce from 

 the effects of over-ripeness. 



AVhen corn is reaped before it arrives at matu- 

 rity, the swollen state of the grains, and the close- 

 ness of the chaff, prevents any loss during the 

 reaping process, as well as in the after operations; 

 while The pliant state of the straw enables almost 

 every stalk to be collected by careful reapers. 



Though, if corn is allowed to be completely ripe 

 before it is reaped, there are few inferior grains; 

 yet a loss is generally sustained by good ones drop- 

 ping ont; and if corn is reaped before it has at- 

 tained full maturity, there is no loss of good grains, 

 but a considerable increase in the number of in- 

 ferior ones ; so it would appear that there is not 

 much ditltirence, in point of good grain produce, 

 between ripe and green reaping; but that there 

 is a quantity of inferior grain in favor of green 

 reaping; and should a gale of wind intervene be- 

 tween the time of green and ripe reaping, the ad- 

 vantage, in point of produce, would be greatly in 

 favor of early reaping. 



I believe Mr.'Coke was the first individual who 

 maintained, that to reap wheat before it reaches 

 maturity, actually improves the quality of grain; 

 and the reason assigned by him lor doing so is, 

 that as soon as wheat arrives at a certain stage of 

 ripeness, part of the nutritious qualities goes fi-om 

 the kernel to the formation of bran. So, accord- 

 ing to Mr. Coke, completely ripened wheat has 

 more bran and less flour, than that Avhich has 

 been cut in a green state. This theory is certainly 

 ingenious; but my want of experience as a manu- 

 facturer of flour and bread, prevents me from giv- 

 ing a decided opinion upon the subject. Were I, 

 however, to judge flom the impression which the 

 external appearance of the grams convey, 1 would 

 say, after having carefully examined the produce 

 of" a variety of experiments, that the difi'erence 

 of quality between wheat that has been complete- 



ly ripened, and that which has been reaped twelve 

 or fourteen days before that stage, is fi-om one to 

 three per cent, in favour of ripe wheat; and when 

 there is six or eight days between the time of 

 reaping, there is no difference of quality. JJut 

 instances frequently occur in which green cutting 

 certainly improves the quality of grain, or at least 

 prevents it from becoming worse. 



When wheat is much lodged, and overgrown 

 with grasses, or excluded from the influence .of air 

 during a continuance of damp weather, it is apt to 

 become discolored, and even to sprout. In such 

 cases, early cutting speedily removes the ears from 

 their perilous situation, and exposes them to a free 

 circulation of air, which is always attended with 

 good effects. 



It is well known, that during damp weather, 

 matured grain sprouts even when standing erect. 

 And from the experience of sowing, it has been 

 ascertained, that dry matured grain sprouts sooner 

 than that which is damp and unmatirred. Then 

 early cutting has a powerful tendency to prevent 

 sprouting ; and it is possible to cut down wheat, 

 and, with the aid of a favorable day, to secure it 

 in a stack before it has arrived at a state liable to 

 sprout. 



Green reaping certainly improves the nutritive 

 qualities of straw; and by enabling farmers to ex- 

 tend the time usually devoted to reaping, it would, 

 if the practice was pretty generally adopted, en- 

 able them to do with fewer reapers, which would 

 consequendy lessen the harvest expenses. 



From the foregoing observations it would ap- 

 pear, that by reaping corn eight or ten days pre- 

 vious to its becoming perfectly ripe, the quality of 

 the grain is not injured — the quantity of gram is 

 increased — the grain in some degree secured from 

 the efl'ects of wind and rain — the straw improved 

 in quality — and the expense of harvesting les- 

 sened. 



If the sun, wind and rain, were under human 

 control, and all the ears of corn could be plucked 

 from the straw and gathered together by the hand 

 alone, then I would be m favor of allowing every 

 species of corn to reach full maturity before reap- 

 ing it. But when the variable and uncertain state 

 of Britisli weather, as well as the enumerated ad- 

 vantages attending green reaping, are taken into 

 consideration, I do not hesitate to recommend the 

 practice of green reaping to the serious attention 

 of all practical agriculturists. 



C. C. 



3d June, 1834. 



From tlio Quartcily Journal of Agriculture. 

 THE CULTUUE OF RHUBARB. 



By J. Towers. 



My notice of this exquisite vegetable shall be 

 comprised in a i'ew lines; but these, 1 trust, will 

 avail to extend its culture more and more; lor any 

 thing more productive, salubrious, profitable, and 

 expressly suitable to the purposes of the cottager, 

 can scarcely be found in the entire list of vegetable 

 productions. A few years only have elapsed since 

 the rhubartic hybrid, g^rce/i rhubarb, was cultivated 

 for tarts, and held in very slight estimation; but 

 since the introduction of the larger (giant) vane- 



