Chap. VI. O/Hoeing. 69 



and covers again, are turn'd into a frefli Pafture ; 

 fome broken, and fome unbroken : All together invi- 

 gorate the Plants. 



Befides, the Plants of fown Corn, being treble in 

 Number to thole of the drill'd, and of equal Strength 

 and Bulk, whilft they are very young, muft exhauft 

 the Earth whilft it is open, thrice as much as the 

 drill'd Plants do; and before the fown Plants grow 

 large, the Pores of the Earth are fhut againft them, 

 and againft the Benefit of the Atmofphere ; but for 

 the drill'd, the Hoe gives conftant Ad million to that 

 Benefit; and if the Hoe procures them (by dividing 

 the Earth) Four Times the Pafture of the fown du- 

 ring their Lives, and the Roots devour but one half 

 of that, then tho 5 the ho'd Crop fhould be double to 

 the fown, yet it might leave twice as much Pabulum 

 for a fucceeding Crop. 'Tis impofiible to bring thefe 

 Calculations to Mathematical Rules ; but this is certain 

 in Practice, that a fown Crop, fucceeding a large un- 

 dung'd ho'd Crop, is much better than a fown 

 Crop, that fucceeds a fmail dung'd fown Crop. 

 And I have the Experience of poor, worn out Heath- 

 ground, that, having produc'd Four fucceflive good 

 ho'd Crops of Potatoes (the laft ft ill belt), is become 

 tolerable good Ground. 



In a very poor Field were planted Potatoes, and, in 

 the very worft Part of it, feveral Lands had them in 

 Squares a Yard afunder ; thefe were plowed four 

 ways at different times : Some other Lands adjoining 

 to them, of the very fame Ground, were very well 

 dung'd and till'd ; but the Potatoes came irregularly, 

 in fome Places thicker, and in others thinner : Thefe 

 were not ho'd, and yet, at firft coming up, looked 

 blacker and ftronger than thofe in Squares not dung'd, 

 either that Year, or ever, that I know of; yet thefe 

 Lands brought a good Crop of the larger! Potatoes, 

 and very few fmall ones amongft them ; but in the 

 dung'd Lands, for Want of Hoeing, the Potatoes 

 F 3 were 



