AMELIORATION OF LAND 97 



Probably in most cases land is left uncropped 

 during a summer, in order that advantage 

 may be taken of the dry weather thoroughly 

 to clean it, an operation which on strong,, 

 plastic clay is difficult between the separation- 

 of one crop in autumn and the sowing of 

 another crop in spring. But if a farmer is 

 prepared to sacrifice a season's growth it is 

 possible, by means of repeated ploughings 

 and harrowings, during the dry weather of 

 summer, to get the weeds effectively eradi- 

 cated. Bare fallow is in most cases followed*, 

 by winter wheat. At the time of the final 

 working of the fallow, usually in the month 

 of August, the land is generally dressed with 

 about ten or twelve loads per acre of farm- 

 yard manure, which is at once ploughed into > 

 the ground, wheat being sowed in the end of 

 September or throughout October. As muchv 

 of the success of this crop depends upon*: 

 getting the seed into the land in good time^ 

 crops that follow bare fallow are generally 

 more productive than those following root 

 crops such as mangolds or swedes, which are 

 not usually removed from the land much 

 before the end of October. Seeing that the 

 land must subsequently be ploughed, it 

 means that, unless the weather is unusually 

 favourable, wheat after a root crop cannot 



