534 TRANSACTIONS OF SECTION M. 



if it could be broken, would be cheaper. As ali'eady stated, the difficulty hae 

 been solved in Denmark by co-operative associations. In Belgium lime used to 

 be carried at half-rate at two periods, spring and autumn, when the railways 

 were less busy than usual. 



Further, it is necessary to add all the plant-nutrients, for sand is usually 

 deficient in these, excepting in places calcium phosphate. The common 

 English practice is to import feeding-stuffs to be eaten by sheej] on the land, 

 so that the great proportion of the nitrogen, potash, and phosphates thus 

 brought on to the farm shall get straight into the soil. This is not sufficient, 

 however, and artificial manures should be used as well and far more extensively 

 than at present : nitrogen, potash, and phosphates are all wanted. 



These additions do not end the matter. Light sandy soils are very prone 

 to weeds, and constant cultivation is necessary to keep them down. Fortunately 

 the cultivation serves another purpose as well ; it helps to retain the moisture 

 content of the soil. 



Thus the management of a light sandy soil is a constant struggle : it 

 demands constant surface cultivations, frequent additions of fertilisers, of 

 organic matter and lime, and periodical deep ploughings to check any tendency 

 to pan formation. When all this is done the light soils become very pro- 

 ductive ; they will grow almost any crops, and they can be cultivated easily 

 and at almost but not quite any time. One of their chief defects is that cereal 

 crops do not produce as much grain as might be expected : in the words of 

 the practical man, they will not 'corn out.' This phenomenon requires further 

 investigation. 



On tlie other hand, neglect in any of these directions soon leads to failure. 

 For light soils more than any others, facilis descensus Averni : an idle or incom- 

 petent man may in a few seasons let down a farm that has been patiently 

 built up by his industrious predecessors. It is ea«y to find tragic instances 

 of this ; and, if any colonisation scheme is attempted on a large scale, it is to 

 be hoped that steps will be taken to prevent falling back. 



These are the conditions for the successful management of light soils : how 

 far can they be attained ? This is a purely economic question. It ifi obvious 

 that success is only possible if the gross returns are sufficient to cover the costs. 

 Now, a very great deal of experience has shown that the ordinary farm-crops — 

 wheat,- barley, swedes, &c. — do not bring in sufficient gross return to encourage 

 good farming. Numerous instances occur on the tracts of light Bagshot sands 

 running westwards fi'om Woking and Staines to beyond Aldershot and Woking- 

 ham. Some of the old four-course farms still survive — wretched little affairs, 

 the tenants of which are constantly struggling against chronic poverty. Again, 

 considerable areas of light land in Hertfordshire caused their cultivators to go 

 bankrupt in the 'nineties when only these ordinary crops were grown. The old 

 Townshend and Coke method of feeding sheep on the land is satisfactory, but 

 it requires the triple, and not very common, qualifications of capital, good 

 knowledge of sheep and of crop management. The situation in Hertfordshire 

 was saved by the potato-crop which, on these farms, brings in a gross return 

 of 25?. or more per acre against a return of 71. from wheat at pre-war prices. 

 Of course the expenditure on potatoes is much greater than on wheat, but that 

 does not matter ; the point is that the expenditure has to be incurred in any 

 case if the land is to be kept in good cultivation, and potatoes bring in the 

 necessary return, while wheat does not. Potatoes are the commonest of money- 

 finding crops, but they are not the only ones. Greens are in some places very 

 successful, bringing in 171. or more gross return. In North Kent various 

 market-garden crops are used. In parts of Norfolk blue peas have answered 

 satisfactorily. Clover-seed is a useful adjunct in places, but it is not suffi- 

 ciently reliable for the chief money-maker. One finds in Suffolk, for example, 

 areas of light land where farmers depend on a lucky haul in clover seed, and 

 consequently are unable to do their sheep and their land as well as they should. 

 Sugar-beet would also serve the purpose ; so would potatoes grown to provide 

 starch. The same end is achieved if two or more crops can be raised in a single 

 season, as in some of the schemes suggested by Wibberley. There is great scope 

 here for the ingenious-minded agriculturist. 



It is not necessary to take the money-finding crop very often ; once in four 

 years may prove sufficient. But the system is capable' pi considerable intensifica- 



