WHEAT. 



hy varying its pofition diagonally, one, two, or three of 

 them may be brought to aft in the fpace of nine inches, 

 without injury to the rows of wheat -plants. If two, they 

 may, it is faid, be drawn in a breadth of three inches ; if 

 three, in a fpace of four inches, and thefe fpaces widened 

 at pleafure, but ftill fo as to keep quite clear of the rows of 

 wheat ; and that by loading the harrow, the teeth are 

 forced to a proper depth. Further, that the fcarifier has 

 teeth of various breadths ; but for working at this feafon, 

 between nine and twelve-inch rows, the narrowed are to be 

 preferred. By the aftion of thefe tools the furface mould 

 is, it is remarked, loofened, and the air admitted, being 

 performed to the depth of two inches with fafety, and 

 without mould being raifed fo as to cover or bury the 

 plants, the earth bemg only loofened, and not difplaced. 

 By thefe contrivances much work can be accomplifhed in 

 a very fhort time. This procefs is alfo ufeful againft; the 

 attacks of the worms. They horfe and hand hoe their 

 wheat -crops repeatedly in ECTex, and with great advantage, 

 though very expenfive. 



But the drilled and dibbled crops, where this method is 

 not employed, particularly in the latter mode, where only 

 one row is placed on a flag, mull be hand-hoed in the inter- 

 vals, which Ihould be done the firft time in the beginning 

 of the above month, and a fecond time towards the end of 

 it, or a little later. Some hkewife do it to the broad-caft; 

 wheats, but this has been fuppofed injurious by many. 

 The bufinefs of thiftling the wheat-crops fhould alfo be 

 carefully performed in May, or in the very early part of 

 the following month, in all cafes where it may be neceflary. 

 The praftice of rolling Ihould alfo be employed without 

 either having recourfe to the harrow, or after it has been 

 ufed, being highly beneficial where the furface is cloddy, 

 and the operation is executed when the ground poflefles a 

 medium degree of moifture, as well by forcing the roots of 

 the wheat into the earth, as by caufing the new ftems to 

 rife. And in thin light foils, when this fort of grain is 

 cultivated upon them, much benefit may alfo be produced 

 in this way, by the roots of the plants being prevented 

 from being fo eafily loofened and thrown out of the ground. 

 And the fame praftice is recommended as generally ufeful 

 by fome where clover or grafs-feeds are fown with wheat- 

 crops, as a means of rendering the vegetation more fecure 

 and perfeft. 



In Berklhire, wheat-crops by the beft farmers are hoed 

 every where, and fometimes hand-weeded, the former on 

 ftrong foils often twice. 



By good cultivators in fome parts of Oxfordftiire, too, 

 all the wheat -crops are hand-hoed in February or March, 

 and weeded afterwards. 



And in Suffex, the praftice moft commonly adopted is 

 to hand-hoe wheat in the fpring, fometimes only once, but 

 frequently twice, as the nature of the preceding crop may 

 have been. By fome, however, hand-hoeing wheat is difr 

 approved of, they never hoe white corn, having given it 

 up, from a conviftion that the crops were never benefited 

 by the praftice ; but, on the contrary, that mifchief was 

 always done by it. On which, it is obferved, that fhould 

 the praftice fometimes be right, and fometimes wrong ; or 

 right on fome foils, and wrong on others, thefe contrary 

 fafts may probably depend on the fpring roots, which 

 are faid to flrike into the air, and enter the ground at 

 fome fmall diftance from the ftem. If a hand-hoeing be 

 given juft before the appearance of thofe roots, it may, on 

 a bounden furface, prepare for their eafy entrance ; but 

 if given afterwards, it is probable the efFeft would be mif- 

 chievous, would retard the progrefs of the plant, and force 



it to do its work over again, perhaps at a worfe fealon. If 

 this be the cafe, the benefit which refults from hitting the 

 time exaftjy, may by no rieans --ual the probability of 

 mifchief upon a fcale of any extent ; in which the right 

 time can fcareely be taken for the whob of a crop. It has 

 been heard declared, too, by excellent farmers, that if a 

 perfon would pay for the hoeing of their wheat, they would 

 not permit the operation, being convinced that it does more 

 harm than good. 



It has alfo been recomraenc'ed, in fuch cafes where the 

 land is not in a fufBcient flate of fertility or preparation to 

 bring the crops to perfeftion, to maiie ufe of top-drefiings. 

 Subftances of both the fohd and fluid kinds lave been made 

 ufe of for this purpofe ; the firll confift ciu'efly of the dung 

 of different forts of birds, after being brought into a 

 powdery ftate, bone-duft:, foot, peat-afhes, and various 

 faline matters. The latter are principally the drainings of 

 dung-hills, and other fimilar liquid materials. The former 

 fhould be thinly fown over the crops with as much evennefs 

 as poffible, as early in the fpring as horfes can be admitted 

 upon the land without injury ; and if it can be done when 

 the weather is inclined to be moifl, it is the better ; a roller 

 may then be paffed over the crop with advantage. Where 

 the latter fubftances are made ufe of, care fhould always be 

 taken that the plants be not injured by having too large a 

 quantity applied to them. In this praftice, the expence 

 fhould be a primary confideration, and fmall trials firft made 

 where dungs are not to be ufed. The proper feafon for 

 performing the bufinefs is the beginning of February. See 

 Manure, and Top-Drejfing. 



It has been fuggefted, too, that the method of tranfplant- 

 ing wheat may be had recourfe to in particular cafes, vrith 

 beneficial confequences, as where there are fome parts 

 of fuch crops too thickly fet upon the ground, while others 

 are too thin, irregular, or patchy ; as by thinning and fet- 

 tmg out the plants of fuch overabundant parts, among 

 thofe that are deficient, much fervice may be done to each 

 of them. The firft will be rendered more capable of admit- 

 ting the operation of the hoe, and thereby of fupplying 

 more abundant nourifhment for the luxuriant vegetation of 

 the plants, and the latter be fupplied with the proper num- 

 ber of plants, which could not be accomplifhed in any other 

 way. And it has been ftated, that when raifed in the gar- 

 den, one acre would be capable of affording fets for an hun- 

 dred, when planted, after being properly divided at the 

 diftance of nine inches from each other ; and that as the 

 bufinefs of tranfplanting is to be performed in the fpring, 

 it is fuppofed that crops of this grain may be raifed in this 

 manner on lands that poffefs a greater degree of moifture 

 than is fuited to liie healthy growth of wheat in general. 

 Befides, clean crops may be produced in this way with 

 much greater certainty, as where the ground is ploughed 

 over juft before the plants are fet out, the grain may rife 

 much quicker from the plants than the weeds from their 

 feeds, and the crop in this way overpowei U'cn noxious 

 plants. Advantages of oth?r kinds have beeu ftated by 

 different writers, as the refnlt of this mode of '-fifing wheat- 

 crops. It is a praftice, which, as well as that of dibbling, 

 has been had recourfe to with fuccefs, both in Norfolk and 

 Efl"ex. 



The cuftom of feeding down wheat-crops, where too 

 forward or luxuriant in the early fpring months, by means 

 of (heep, is a praftice that has been contended to be bene- 

 ficial in many cafes. The good effefts, in fuch inftances, 

 according to Dr. Darwin, are fuppofed to arife from the 

 removal of the upright central ftems, by which means dif- 

 ferent new lateral items or root fcions are fent off or 

 Y y 2 brought 



