AGRICULTURE 



and for 1905. The area under wheat has decreased to an enormous extent, 

 and was actually under 7,000 acres in 1904. Barley has been fairly constant, 

 but oats have diminished by about one-fourth. Wheat is sold to the largest 

 extent in the corn markets of Sunderland and Stockton, barley in Stockton 

 and Darlington, and oats in Darlington. Rye is of little importance and is 

 now grown principally as an early green food. Beans and peas were fairly 

 extensive crops in 1867, but the areas of these, especially of peas, have 

 latterly become very small, as the large amounts of oil-cakes now available 

 for feeding purposes have made the use of beans and peas, which are both 

 rich in albuminoids, not nearly so necessary on the farm, while the greater 

 cost of harvesting them, especially peas, and the increase in the value of 

 labour, have also restricted their growth. Much of the clay land also, 

 which was especially suitable for beans, has been laid down to pasture. 

 The area of potatoes has been more than doubled, while turnips and swedes 

 have slightly decreased. Mangels are not important, although they have con- 

 siderably increased in the past few years ; the short summer, however, and the 

 prevalence of summer frosts operate specially against this crop. Cabbages are 

 not extensively grown as a field crop, though they are found to be most useful 

 on some of the dairy farms. Clovers and grasses under rotation are usually 

 mown in the first year, and grazed when allowed to lie for a second. Practi- 

 cally no sainfoin or lucerne is grown, nor clover excepting in a mixture with 

 grasses. The area of permanent pasture has increased by about fifty per cent, 

 and of meadow hay by about eighty per cent, and now nearly two-thirds of 

 the old arable is laid away as pasture or meadow land. Bare fallowing is 

 practised only to one-fourth of the extent of 1867. A considerable area of flax 

 was grown about 1870, but this as a fibre crop was not a success and it has 

 been practically given up. Mustard also, which was largely grown about 

 1770 for manufacture as a condiment, has for long been unimportant and has 

 now disappeared. 



The four-course rotation is usually followed in a modified form, and is 

 frequently lengthened to a five-course by keeping the seeds down for a 

 second year. For the average of the ten years 1894-1903 the yields of 

 crops (per acre) in the county compared with those of England and Great 

 Britain were as follow : 



Co. Durham England Great Britain 



Btuhcli BuiheU Butheli 



Wheat . 30-44 30-95 30-95 



Barley . . . 36*14 33'OO 33' 1 ? 



Oats 37'99 4i'O9 39'o6 



Beans .... 26-63 28-02 28-25 



Peas 24-27 26-35 26-29 



Tom Tons Tom 



Potatoes .... 5-43 5-80 5-75 



Turnips and swedes . . 13-02 11-96 12-79 



Mangels 1 .... 14*64 18-36 18-30 



Cwt. Cwt. Cwt. 



Hay (rotation) . . . 33-94 29-03 29-13 



Hay (old land) . . . 24 27 24'O5 23-63 



1 Summer frosts (on the grass) are very prevalent in the north-cast of England. An inquiry during the 

 past few yean has shown that this crop suffers both in bulk and quality to a marked degree when these frosts 

 are frequent. The comparatively short summer of the county is also distinctly unfavourable to the mangel 

 crop. On the other hand, barley does remarkably well in the county, probably because the local summer 

 conditions prevent a too rapid ripening. 



365 



