sow 



sow 



tages of thefe methods, fee the articles DRrLL> Drilling, 

 Hoeing, Husbandry, and Drill Machine. 



Mr. J. Horn of Dover, Kent, conltrufled an umvsrfa! 

 jive-furro'w machine of this nature, which he recommended 

 as fuited for either broad-cafting or drilhng all the different 

 forts of grain, pulfe, and feeds, with eqisal regularity and 

 eafe, as well as in any quantity or proportion, and depth, 

 that may be thought proper. And which alfo poffeffes, he 

 fays, the peculiar advantage of fowing turnips, fo as to 

 enfure the crop a'Tainil the ravages of the fly. This ad- 

 vantage is obtained by fowing the ufual quantity oi turnip 

 feed Iroad-cajl by the machine, and at the fame time ftrik- 

 ing furrows at a proper diitance apart in the land ; by this 

 means part of the feed is depofited in the drills, and the 

 reft fown in broad-caft between them, fo that if it proves 

 a dry fe.-ifon, it is favourable for that depofited in the drills, 

 if a vi'et feafon, for that which is fown broad-caft between 

 them : and if that part of the feed which is fown broad- 

 caft is carried avi-;iy by the fly, that which is depofited in 

 the drills, by coming at another period of time, is faved, 

 and "Vice -verfd. If the whole grows, the farmer has then 

 the opportunity of feltfting the inoft vigoroiis plants from 

 both. But notwithftanding thefe itated advantages, the ma- 

 chine is, we believe, little employed by the cultivators of 

 land. 



No machine, as far as we know, has hitherto been in- 

 vented, which is well contrived for, and adapted to, the 

 purpofe of general fowing, though a great number of at- 

 tempts of this kind have been made at different times, in 

 the view of fupplying fo great a defeil in the agricultural 

 machinery of the country. Tfiey have all been found on 

 trial, and when put fully to the teft, to be materially de- 

 feftive in feme important point or other, which rendered 

 them either wholly ufelcfs, or only capable of being employed 

 imder particular circumftances. This has been equally the 

 cafe, whatever may have been the nature or kind of con- 

 ftruftion, in which they have been formed. In order to 

 conftruft a machine to be generally ufeful in this intention, 

 it muft be free from every kind of fault ordefeft in the de- 

 livery of all forts of grain, pulfe, and feeds, be capable of 

 very great nicety and variation in fowing all thefe different 

 articles, be very eafy and exa6l in the movements of the in- 

 ternal parts, have great latitude of motion, giving way, 

 and taking up in the lliares or other parts, which are made 

 ufe of in forming the little furrows or drills in the land, be 

 capable of being guided and direfted with eafe and facility 

 in a regular, fteady, and exaft manner, be cheap and rea- 

 fonable in the expence of its conftruftion, &c. But very 

 few of thefe materially important points and objefts have 

 yet been accompliflied in a full, complete, and fatisfaftory 

 manner, in any of the fowing machines which have been 

 contrived and conftrufted. Some of them, as already fug- 

 gefted, have a defeft in fome one of the particulars, fome 

 others in another, by which means they become neglefted 

 and of no ufe to the farmer, whofe fowing muil at leatt be 

 performed with a certain degree of correftnefs. 



It is evident, therefore, from what has been faid, that 

 the conftruSors of fuch forts of machinery, to render it 

 generally ufeful, fliould have a full and competent knowledge 

 of the moft proper proportions or quantities of the above 

 feveral kinds of articles which are to be fown, as well as of 

 the moft fuitable widths, diftances, or fpaces between the 

 rows, which are neceffary to be fown and left, in different 

 cafes and circumftances, in fowing with machines of this 

 nature, as where this is not the caf'e, there muft frequently, 

 if not generally, be much lofs fuftained in making fuch 

 machines to fow too much or too little feed, as the dif- 



ferences in the feed, and the fpaces which are required in 

 different ftates and circumftances, and conditions of land 

 and feafon, are very great. The proportions of feed that 

 are the moft beneficial for early and late fowing are by no 

 means the fame ; nor does different kinds and Itates of the 

 foil admit of the fame. Thev may differ alio on fome other 

 accounts. The fpace.=, which are the moft ufeful, likewifc 

 vary greatly in different kinds of foil, crops, and cultiva- 

 tion. It is coufequently feen, that a perfeft knowledge of 

 this fort is abfolutely neceffary, and that fuch fowing ma. 

 chines as are mcapable of fowing any kind of grain or feed 

 in any proportion or quantity which may be required, are 

 by no means fit for public or general ufe. In the internal 

 parts of machines of this fort there ftiould be great fim- 

 plicity and incapability of being put out of order, the mov- 

 ing cyfuiders, or other parts fupplying their places, being 

 made fo as to admit of great variation in the degrees of 

 their motion or velocity. The utility of tin cylinders for 

 this purpofe is fomewhat doubtful, and the fhaking or iift- 

 ing principle ha; not been found to fucceed well, except in 

 the cafe of round feeds, fuch for inftance as thofe of the 

 turnip, cabbage, rape, clover, and fome other fimilar kinds, 

 and even in thefe cafes fometimes, with fome of thefe feeds, 

 a feed will ftick in a hole which will permit another fort to 

 pafs in a free manner, and in thofe forts which moft readily 

 pafs, there is rarely a deficiency of fome fmall feeds, of 

 which two are capable of entering the fame hole at the fame 

 time, which, by flicking fall together, impede and prevent 

 the delivery in fuch machines. On this account, fome fow- 

 ing machines fow too much of one fort of fuch feeds and 

 fcarcely half enough of another. Pierced cylinders of the 

 tin kind might probably be made to fow peas, which are 

 nearly round in their form ; but they would not be found 

 to aiifwer the fame purpofe for wheat or beans, and ftill 

 lefs for barley or oats. And the fame may perhaps be the 

 cafe in fowing fome other forts. It is therefore probable, 

 that wooden or metal cylinders, which have grooves on 

 their furfaces, and bruthes to promote and regulate the de- 

 livery, are the beft modes which have yet been difcovered 

 for effefting the purpofe of fowing in a proper manner in 

 thefe m.ichines, though they are far from approaching any 

 fort of perfeftion in the bufinefs. 



The fhares, or other contrivances, which are made for the 

 purpofe of forming the little drills or furrows in the ground 

 for the reception of the feed, fhould have great power and 

 facility of moving and giving way in an upward direction in 

 cafe of their meeting with any hard impeding fubftances in 

 the foil, and that they may be ufed on all iorts and forms 

 of ridges. They fhould alfo have the capabihty of being 

 wholly taken up, when occafion may require, as in turning 

 at the ends of the ridges, and in removing from one place 

 or field to another, in order to prevent the machine from 

 being broken and deftroyed. 



Thefe machines fhould likewife have great eafe and capa- 

 bility given them of being direfted and guided, while in 

 their work, by the exaft regulation of the fhare or fowing 

 parts only, or by thefe in conneftion with the other parts, 

 as where there is a want or any material incorreftnefs in 

 this refpeft, the after-culture of the crops may be greatly 

 impeded or wholly hindered from taking place. 



There is, cor.fequently, a variety of points and circum- 

 ftances which fliould engage the attention and confidera- 

 tion of the agricultural artificer and mechanic, who is 

 anxious to fucceed in the conftruftion of ufeful machinery 

 of this fort, and particularly that of a general or univerfal 

 fowing-machine. 



The article Drill Machine contains an account of fow- 

 ing 



