FLANDERS HUSBANDRY. 



IS cut ; 2d, oats ; 3d, buckwheat ; 4tli, 

 potatoes or carrots ; 5lli, rye and tur- 

 nips ; 6th, flax ; 7th, clover. 



" When the sand hceoines a good 

 light loam, wheat is introduced in the 

 rotation, after potatoes or after clo- 

 ver : the latter is thoU;L;ht the best 

 practice, as the roots of the clover 

 both enrich and consolidate the soil. 



" Rye recurs more iVequently than 

 would be thought prudent if it were 

 not for the turnips sown after it, 

 which seem to correct the efTect pro- 

 duced on the soil by the seeding of 

 the rye ; so that rye and turnips are 

 sometimes followed by rye, in which 

 clover is sown in the next spring. 

 Thus rye and turnips may alternate 

 in light lands, as beans and wheat 

 sometimes do in rich heavy clays. 

 The turnips are never eaten on the 

 land where they grow, but are al- 

 ways drawn and housed in the end 

 of September, the green tops being 

 cut off and given to the cows and 

 pigs, and the roots stored in dry cel- 

 lars. The land is then immediately 

 ploughed after some dung has been 

 put on ; and if oats are tiie next crop, 

 which are sown in spring, it remains 

 so all winter. 



" When the land is of a better qual- 

 ity, although still in the class of light 

 loams, wheat recurs more frequently, 

 and the rotation is varied as follows : 

 rye and turnips, potatoes, wheat, 

 rye and turnips, oats, llax, clover, 

 wheat. If the soil is fit for barley, 

 this grain is sul)stituted for rye. 

 Carrots are frequently sown in the 

 barley, and also in the flax ; they 

 strike deep into the rich light earth, 

 but come to no size while the princi- 

 pal crop is on the ground. As soon 

 as this is taken ofi', the land is har- 

 rowed and carefidly weeded by hand ; 

 liquid manure, diluted if the weather 

 is dry and warm, is spread over the 

 surface, and in a short time the car- 

 rots throw out their green tops and 

 swell in the ground : by the end of 

 September a considerable crop of 

 them may be dug up. The best va- 

 riety for this purpose is a large white 

 carrot, which rises some inches out 

 of the ground : it has been lately 

 SOU 



brought into notice in England, and 

 will, no doubt, soon be more gener- 

 ally cultivated. There is another 

 variety, which is yellow, and also at- 

 tains a good size ; but it is inferior 

 to the first in good ground. The 

 quantity of roots raised lor the winter 

 provision of the cattle is considera- 

 ble, and forms a very important part 

 of the husliandry of Flanders, where 

 all the cattle are constantly kept in 

 the stables in winter, and, except 

 where there are natural pastures, in 

 the summer also. 



" Flax is everywhere a most im- 

 portant crop, for it much exceeds all 

 other crops in value. Where it can 

 be raised of a tolerable quality, every 

 other crop has a reference to this ; 

 and the rotation is arranged accord- 

 ingly. There is no country where 

 m(jre attention is paid to flax than 

 in Flanders, especially in the neigh- 

 bourhood of Courtray. The land is 

 brought into the highest state of rich- 

 ness and cleanness before flax is 

 sown in it ; and the most abundant 

 manuring with rape-cake and urine 

 is thought essential to raise this crop 

 in perfection. 



'■On the heavier loams, colza or 

 rape is an important crop for the seed, 

 from which the oil is expressed. It 

 is sown in a bed in July or August, 

 and planted out in rows two feet apart 

 in October. The seed ripens early in 

 the next summer, and a good crop of 

 turnips may be had alter it. The 

 summers being in general warmer 

 and drier than in England, the Flem- 

 ish farmer is enabled to thrash out 

 his rape-seed on a cloth in the field 

 soon after the stems have been cut 

 and laid gently on the ground to dry 

 the pods. Any delay in this opera- 

 tion would cause a great loss : with 

 every care and attention, much seed 

 is always scattered in harvesting, be- 

 cause the pods do not ripen equally, 

 and some will have shed their seeds 

 before others are sufficiently ripe to 

 be gathered. 



" Potatoes were introduced into 

 Flanders about the year 1740, and, 

 from being at first only cultivated as 

 a rarity, soon became an important 



