308 Of Ploughing. 



to plough across the land, till the third furrow was given (* 8 ), 

 and this recommendation is generally followed by farmers 

 in England on clay soils (* 9 ); but in Scotland the cross- 

 ploughing is always given with the second furrow. The 

 bead-ridge cannot well be cross-ploughed, but it' should be 

 done first, whenever there is more than one ploughing. If 

 then neglected, it gets only one stirring afterwards, and the 

 produce is inferior to what it would otherwise have been, 

 the land not being so well pulverized, 



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12. Trench Ploughing.] / 



The plan of ploughing double furrows, either by a plough 

 with a skim coulter, or by means of one plough following 

 another, though not often practised, has been recommend- 

 ed, as an advantageous mode of breaking up grass land. 

 The first plough pares off the surface from one to two inches 

 thick, and turns it into the bottom of the last made furrow; 

 while the second plough, going three or four inches deeper, 

 turns upon it a sod of friable earth, which, being destitute of 

 fibrous roots, harrows to a fine mould witM little difficulty. 

 The additional expense, on common occasions, is only 6s. 

 per acre, which, in breaking up old swards, on clayey soils, 

 is almost saved in the expense of harrowing ; but where two 

 additional horses and a driver are necessary, the extra cost 

 will be from 7s. to 10s. per acre. 



Intrench ploughing, it is in general necessary, not to 

 go beyond the usual depth, but merely to separate the ve- 

 getable mould, OK cultivated soil, from the lower stratum ( 3o ). 

 But in the sandy districts of Wiltshire, it is not uncommon, 

 when a second plough follows in the furrow of the first, to 

 go so deep as to throw up new soil, and to bury that which 

 is supposed to be exhausted. This is done likewise in many 

 parts of Devonshire, and is the same system, which, in 

 Flanders, is executed in sandy soils, by manual labour. 

 This plan however, can only with propriety be adopted, 

 where there is in reserve, an extra depth of good soil, which 

 may be turned up, when the surface indicates exhaustion. 

 Where the subsoil is of a bad quality, it is not advisable to 

 go so deep ( 3l ), and the soil that has been long in cultiva- 

 tion, is kept uppermost. 



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1 3. Ploughing- Matches. 



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 From the great importance of good ploughing, every 



