THE AGRICULTUR AL GAZETTE. 



[Di c. 21, 



(TTTdimimBhed both the .alms and amount of the pro- 

 duce for hand-hoeing i. such an inefficient operation, 

 except <h\ extirpafion of weed,, that little advantage 

 £uUl be exacted from it. Intimately connected w. b 

 rtese trials is the further inquiry, with -hat mtertals 

 Wheat should be dnUed ? ^ ^ Weight 



trusses, lbs. bl*. gals. Ihj. 



At 6 in. apart 4 perches gave per acre 97 28 J7 4 « 



Here the excess of quantity seems to have injured the 

 Duality ; but in another field the same effect was pro- 

 duced by a different cause. Four intervals were tried ; 

 the produce was— •- 



Si aw Corn 



1~ 1 



'rus.lbs. 



bhls.gls. 



68 32 



39 1 



77 28 



45 6 



S3 1 



1 71 6 



46 5 



35 



v\ k hf 

 >. >>shl 



At 6 in. hoed twice but not rolled . . 

 At 7 in. hoed twice, rolled with 4 horses 

 A' H«n. hoed twin-, rol'ed with 2 horses 

 Ato in. hoed twice. n>Med wi th 2 hors 



~ ThiTiMTtion of ground on which these experiments 

 were tried was taken for that purpose out of its natural 

 course, having borne a crop of Wheat the year before 

 last • in order, therefore, to bring it back into the usual 

 series of crops, it was sown with Clover, which in the 

 three closer intervals failed entirely, but in that of 

 9 inches was strong and covered the ground. Now, 

 since where two crops grow together the second must 

 rob the other of part of its nourishment, the inferiority 

 in the latter case is no more than might be expected. 



Another point which I wished to investigate was the 

 practicability of supplying the defect of substance in 

 grain by the. addition of aliment to the growing plant, 

 and so making the worst seed answer the same purpose 

 as the best. Some bad Barley having come up suffi- 

 ciently well, wns manured with phosphate of potash, at 

 the rate of 1 cwt. per acre. . 



Straw. Corn. Weight, 



tmsses. l*s. bis. gals, lbs 



6 perches of it gave . . . 37 28 26 5 48 



Good Bar ley without the phosphate 35 10 2/4 50 



The seed b ing so very thin, the hand that scattered it 

 would hold many more grains, and ibis will account for 

 the greater bulk of straw ; notwithstanding which the 

 corn was inferior both in quality and quantity, but not 

 io much as might have been expected ; and, perhaps, if 

 some sulphate of ammonia had been added, the result 

 might have been very different ; for where it was applied 

 to "that part of the field where good Bailey was sown, 

 the produce was increased by almost 7 bushels of corn 

 per acre, and more than 7 trusses of straw. The re- 

 maining ex eriments having been made in garden- 

 ground, and consequently on a small scale, it will be 

 sufficient instead of calculating the average of each to 

 give the weights actually weighed, and the quantities 

 actually measured, for the purpose of comparing the 

 results one with another : this will be more accurate. 

 Two atljoit.it g pl»tsof ground being sown, one with tail- 

 ing Wheat, and the other with go d Wheat, in the 

 spring, both were divided into 4 parallelograms, and one 

 in each, comprising a space of 36'f square yards, was 

 left without any manure except what the whole ground 

 had recti ve.l the year before as a preparation for Pota- 

 toes ; the second par. was wi'ered in April with a solu- 

 tion of 2«b. of phosphate of potash ; the third par. with 

 1 lb. of the phosphate, and 1 lb. of sulphate of ammona ; 

 and the fourth par. with 21b. of sulfhaeof ammonia. 

 All these contained 35 square yanis. The produce 

 was — 



l)3 t superior manures, and if we do not find it acting 

 A,rh equal power in all localities, we may say, that this 

 is not to be ascribed to the gypsum, but to other causes 

 not vet explained. It is true, of gypsum especially, as 

 »f many mineral substances generally, that small quanti- 

 ties only are required for improving vegetation, and if it 

 be thought that this be caused by some sort of stimulus 

 which it exercises over the plants, this is not the case, 

 because I have found by many experiments, that it serves 

 them really as food. If it were merely a stimulant, it 

 ought to be assumed that it will improve the growth of 

 rt ll° plants, but we see, on the contrary, that it avails 

 those chiefly which contain much albumen, gluten, and 

 l« umen, which is easily to be explained by these very 

 substances requiring sulphur for their chemical compos^ 

 tion, which is supp ied to the plants by the sulphuric acid 

 or the gypsum. That it is really the sulphuric acid which 

 is useful to the plants, we may learn from other sulphuric 

 - .Irs (for instance, sulphate of iron), when employed in 

 small quantities, acting very beneficially on vegetation, 

 as well as from the fact that gypsum will be useful even 



on calcareous soils. 



There are several sorts of gypsum which may be used 

 as manures : there is one of a crystalline granular cha- 

 racter (alabaster); others fibrous, scaly, earthy, &c. ; 

 there is also one which contains no water, and therefore 



vpsum is to be useful, the- soil must always contain 

 humus, even if it be only 2 or 3 per cent., as the humic 

 acid has also to transfer other similar substances to the 

 roots required for vege ation. If, however, it contains 

 too much of free humic acid, it will decompose the 

 gypsum, so much so, that humate of lime will be formed 

 aiid the sulphuric acid will be set free, which may then 

 act as a corrosive on the roots of the crop. On that 

 account, a soil very rich in humus must never be manured 

 ! with too much gypsum, because though the sulphuric 

 acid were to combine with another base, contained in the 

 soil, it would still form therewith a salt easily soluble in 

 water, by which the plants will receive too much sul- 

 phuric acid at once. — From the German of Professor 



Sprengel. _^_^__^____ 



Tailing Wheat, 



■worst that could 



be selected. 



Weight of 

 Com . 



V\ ei^ht of 

 Straw. 



Q tantity of 

 Corn. 



1 Unmanured 



2 Phosu. potash . 



3 Phosp. sulph. . 



4 Sulph. amnion. 



GOOD WHEAT. 



1 Unmanured . 



3 P loap. potash. 

 3Phosp& sulph. 



4 S-ilph. animon. 



lb. 



11 

 15 



ii- 

 iy 



13 



17 



18 

 19 



oz. 

 6 

 6 



2 



12 



11 

 4 



10 

 2 



lb. 

 21 

 25 



27 

 29 



24 



27 



•28 

 29 



oz. 



8 

 8 

 4 



14 







6 



12 

 4 



gall. qf. pt. 



1 



2 

 2 

 2 



1 

 2 

 2 

 2 



2 







1 

 2 



3 



1 

 2 

 2 







I 



i 

 o 





 



02 



It appears, then, that although the worst seed is cer- 

 tainly less productive than the best, yet the difference is 

 not so great as might be exprcted ; and that upon soil 

 which is capable in itself of yielding about 30 bushels pe 

 acre, when the plant is fed by sulphate of ammonia, there 

 is no difference at all, at least none worthy of notice. The 

 value of this manure is again strikingly displayed, the 

 crop being increased by it at the ra r e of about 50 per 

 cent, I had expected more from the mixed salts, but 

 that turrfed out to be not a fair trial. It is impossible to 

 guard against all sources of inaccuracy ;and in this case, 

 some rats had burrowed under those portions which were 

 SO manured ; and when the corn was reaped, 45 of them 

 were killed. The cunning creatures bad eaten off the 

 root3 of several plants, in order to bring them down, and 

 then gnawed off the ears, and carried them to their nests. 

 The quantity thus destroyed was considerable ; but sup- 

 posing both to have suffered in equal proportion, we 

 must infer that the other manures cannot compensate 

 for the inferiority of the bad seed, though it is enabled 

 by them to produce a great deal more than the good seed 

 left without their assistance. — L. Vernon Har court, 

 West Dean House. 



(To he continue d ) 



GYPSUM AS MANURE. 

 Gypsttm was not used in agriculture til! the latter half 

 of the last century. First, it met with much antagenism; 

 now, however, it is considered everywhere as one of the 



consists of 58 parti of sulphuric acid and 42 parts of lime. 

 The ear'hy is mostly mixed with particles of marl, whilst 

 the scaly contains an admixture of a little oxide of non, 

 bitumen, common salt, &c. The extraneous admixtures 

 at timps increase its value as a roanire, at others they 

 impair it, which is to be attended to in ifc selection 



and use- •.'•'« % •*. 



Before gypsum is used it is mostly burn*, because it 



will be then easier converted into a fme powder. By the 

 burning it loses nothing but the water of crystallisation 

 or the chemically bound water (2J per cent.). If burnt 

 K ypsum be Lett lying in the air, it will again attract from 

 Has much water as it had previously lost, which be- 

 comes asain chemically fixed. It is soluble in water : still, 

 450 lbs. of water will be required to dissolve 1 lb. of gyp- 

 sum. The property of being pretty easily soluble in 

 water, and so sinking with it in the subsoil, explains why 

 the manure with gypsum is so often to be repeated ^be- 

 cause, if at one time i nlv 80 lbs. be used per acre, they 

 ought to suffice longer than we find to be the case, as 

 one crop will not absorb more than 7 or 8 lbs. of gyp- 

 sum. It does not cause any decomposition in the soil, 

 nor is it changed hself, except if the soil contains much 

 free humic acid, or if it be strewed (as is now often done) 

 over the fresh dung and ploughed in with it, in which 

 case it will sustain a partial decomposition by the car- 

 bonate of ammonia, developed from the excrements, so 

 much so, that sulphate of ammonia and carbonate of lime 

 are formed-, generally, therefore, it passes (solved in 

 water) in an entire stare into the plants. It is generally 

 strewed over the growing young crops, and farmers like it 

 well, if they are yet wet from dew, as it is believed that it 

 will 'then act as a better stimulus upon the leaves. Still, 

 experience has shown that it will produce the same effect 

 if it is washed off the leaves by rain-water ; nay, it has 

 been found thct it will, in most cases, improve the growth 

 of Clover (which is mostly manured wi h it) best, if it be 

 -tiered over the field befoie winter, and harrowed in 

 with the seed. This phenomenon is easily explained by 

 the gypsum finding the sooner in the soil the water re- 

 quired for is solution; and it being now distributed over 

 the whole furrow-slice, it can be easier received by the 



roots of the plants. 



Generally, double the quantity of the Rye used for 

 seed, is employed of gypsum, but there are also soils 

 where only 30 lbs. per acre must be used at once, lest it 

 should over-force Beans or Peas. On some soils gypsum 

 will not act at all, which will be the case if they possess 

 already a sufficient quantity of it. It will be most use- 

 ful to light soils, as they lose the soonest by the rain- 

 water that gypsum which has been c mveyed to them by 

 the dung ; whilst clayey soils will retain it longer. At 

 times, gypsum will not produce any effect, on account of 

 the soil being deficient in one or more substances re- 

 qui ed for the growth of plants ; for that such a simple 

 substance as gypsum may act beneficially, the soil must 







SKETCHES OF EAST LOTHIAN HUSBANDRY. 

 Farm Servants. — In the following cursory remarks 

 on the management and condition of the farm-servants 

 in this county, I shall advert — 1st. To the manner 

 of hiring ; 2d! To the amount of wages and mode of 

 payment; and 3d. To their general character and con- 

 dition. By far the greater part of the regular farm- 

 labour is performed by married servants, usually called 

 hinds. They are hired annually from the 26th May 

 (Whitsunday, O.S.), to the same period of the following 

 year ; but there are numerous instances of servants re- 

 maining with one master throughout the currency of a 

 lease. Indeed, comparatively few leave their places at 

 >he expiration of a single year. When a farmer is de- 

 sirous of retaining any of his hinds in his service for 

 another year after that which he is then serving, he must 

 inform each of those whom he intends to keep of his 

 wishes at a certain time before the Whitsunday on which 

 their term expires. This day, which is called " speaking 

 time," occurs in the beginning of February, and is- 

 general throughout the county. The servants to whom 

 their masters do not " spe;ik" at this period, infer that 

 their services are no longer required, and look out imrae-* 

 diately for other employers. Regular hiring-markets 

 are held at Haddington and Dunbar, at which hinds are 

 engaged for the year subsequent to the approaching 

 Whitsunday. Certificates of "industry, sobriety, and 

 fidelity," are generally required from servants before 

 engaging them. The employer has to remove the hind's 

 furniture, &c, from his former to his new abode. Single 

 servants, boarded and lodged in the farmer's house, are 

 hired by the half-year. The hinds are always paid in 

 kind, or with the produce of the farm. Tue following 

 Hie the quantities of grain, &C, which they receive, and 

 the prices of each article computed according to its 

 market value in February last : — 



Hinds' Wages. 

 9 qrs. of Oats .... value 

 2 do., 2 bushels of Barley . 

 I do., Peas or Beans .... 



Cow's keep 



In lieu of Lint (Flax) . . • 

 Potatoes, 1200 yards along a drill . 



£9 18 

 3 16 



1 



■ 5 

 1 



, 2 



10 

 

 

 





 









 

 



Yearly value £23 4 

 ; In addition to the above, the hinds receive five weeks' 

 meal in harvest, and t.eir coals are carted home free Ot 

 expense. A farmer's steward, or grieve, gets the same 

 quantity of grain as a hind, and generally from ol. to li. 

 additional, in cash ; a shepherd \L additional, and in 

 Bome place* the piivilege of keeping four or five sheep 

 with his master',. Tnere is a little difference in some 

 places in the article, which make up the hind . wages 

 out their entire value is nearly the same throng mut the 

 county, amounting, on an averse of years, to about 

 23/. 10*. aunudly, or nearly 9s. a week-a sum inferior 

 to what the day-labourer frequently receives ; but ^ must 

 be taken into consideration that the pay of the later 

 ceases when he is unable to work, in consequence of in- 

 disposition, inclement weather, or scarcU) • o f emp oy 

 me it j while that of the former is but very a d .om .ub 

 jecttos.ch casualties Unmarried men usually obta m 

 from 3/. 10a. to 5/. the half-year with bed and board in 

 their master's house. The usual rare of wag for day 

 labourers is 9*. to 10*. per week ; women boys get 

 lOrf. a day in summer, and 9d. in winter. The wage o 

 eVp-rs in harvest have, during the last few years, varied 



substauce as gypsum may act oenenciany, iue sun musi (fom gs , 12s . a we ek, exclusive of their diet, wnicu 

 possess all the other substances required for vegetation. ommou ] v va lued at Sd. per diem. , 



U * — ■"•- smith 'work is always executed by contract, and >.« 



qU enU, ,l.o that of thec.rpenter.nJ the ^ler Asm 1 

 commonly receives from 11. 10*. to « , wr^ u, 

 pair of horses in shoes, a plough vn irons and keeping 

 pa» of harrows in order, beeine. the plough .nd «« 



'harness, & c, in chai.s. A fh'-^H.Xj. 

 commencement to the end of a lease, will i apl.ow I 

 of horses during .hat period in cart and 1 plough to .« 



■lines, cart-ropes, currwcombs.&c.for 2»-« J^ 



There are many places where gypsum once greatly im- 

 proved the growth of Clover, whilst its application is 

 now wi'hout any result. The cause might be, that the 

 soil below the furrow-slice, in which Clover reaches with 

 its roots, does not possess enough of potash, phosphate 

 of lime, &c. Because if a plant, like the Clover, re- 

 quires fifteen substances for its growth, and if only one 

 is deficient, it is clear that the remaining fourteen will 

 avail it nothing, even if they were abundant. We see, 

 therefore, that gypsum will produce the best effect in 

 such soils where, shortly beore, marl has been used, as 

 the soil will have received by the latter many mineral 

 substances, but no gypsum. The addition of gypsum 

 will thus cause the components of marl to act better. 

 The favourable issue, however, of manuring wiih gypsum 

 depends yet on other circu i stances, of which I shall 

 mention the most important. It will act beneficially 

 only in wet, warm years, as in this case the water *ill 

 not only convey it to the plants, but the heat will assis' 

 the assimilation of sulphuric acid ; i. e. the leaves will 

 only deoxidise the sulphuric acid by the assistance of 

 thesoUr rays, whereby they exhale the oxygen and re- 

 tain the sulphur for the formation of albumen, glut-n, &<•. 

 That this process really takes place in leaves, is to be 

 seen by the gypsum acting very little in wet, dank 

 weather, and that, being strewed over Clover growing in 



following 



formed "by*contract, at the 



0s. 2\d to 



05. 3£<*- 



3 

 11 

 10 



6 

 









4 



12 

 11 







6 







plough -lines, cart-ropes, curn-^mu.,-.,...-- - 

 P The farmers generally prefer ^"f/^^tf „ 

 operations executed by piece or job-work. The tolio 



operations are generally per 

 annexed rates: — 



Cutting tile-drains, per rod of 18 feet : . • 

 Mowing an ordinary crop of Clover and Rye- 

 grass, per square acre . . ♦ ■ 

 Reaping and binding, Wheat, per do. . 

 >itto, Oats or Barley, per do. • • fa 



The farm-servants of this county, however low 



( -^^:Tm^ as^reat- «£ i "/ 



tinned whether there can be found , D .any o.ber 

 m ore faithful or correct workmen Jan the ^hinds 

 Lothian. The circumstance which ^^fj'Xbourers 



weather, and that, oerog streweu over ^.over growing ... — - ~~;7 pr nl .. rea u that they receive 

 the shade it will avail it nothing at all. If manuring with in many other places is, mat y 



